Qahla
by Joeybird
Summary: Located in the Olympic Peninsula; the native reservation La Push is home to the Quillayute. After a brief encounter with a four-legged beast, Seth Clearwater finds himself hunting down the mysteries of his home in hopes of finding out why his best friend refuses to speak with him.
1. Postmortem

_**Postmortem**_

* * *

The refined wooden rifle was lifted into the air. The cocking of the weapon sounded; quiet enough to not alert the pray. It stood in the middle of a small clearing, drinking from shallow pools of icy water. The evening sun beamed onto its silky fur, illuminating for all to see. I wanted to stare at it forever.

With quick thinking, I reached into my hunting bag, grabbing my well-aged camera. Looking towards the figure crouched next to me, "May I?" I whispered, gesturing with the item.

I was met with a stern look, to which I countered with my puppy dog face. Evidently in the end, I came out as the sole victor.

"Get ready to fire." I whispered. Raising the lens to my eye, I aimed for the perfect shot. My finger slowly pushed in.

The shutter echoed, instantly disturbing the peaceful forest. The unfamiliar sound startled the elk as it whipped its head towards our direction, only to be met with the sound of a bang.

Birds scattered from the trees around us.

I watched as the paper film was extracted from the camera. Pulling it out, I waved the finished product back and forth in the air before returning both items back into the bag.

I looked up to see my hunting partner already approaching the carcass. Swiftly grabbing my bag, I jogged towards the scene; snow crunching under my feet with each step.

"Nice shot." I said, looking into the face of the elk, noticing how the bullet went straight into the eye.

"Thank you, young man." They responded in a gruff voice, to which I gave a toothy grin.

It wasn't surprising. My father, Harry Clearwater, has been hunting since he was my age, so all these years of practice had to be worth something.

Minutes passed as my father and I dragged the carcass back to the old pickup truck. After lifting the large beast into the back, I went around to the passenger's side, hopping in and settling down before opening my bag to retrieve the photo.

The shot came out perfectly. It didn't of course compare to seeing it in person, but it was as perfect as a picture could get.

My father stepped into the driver's seat and revved the engine to life. Soon we were on the road back home.

Leaning on the rolled down window, the cool winter breeze seeped in through, gently brushing against my face as I breathed in the sweet scent of the forest.

The moment was perfect.

I glanced towards my father; the content look written on his face seemed to agree.

The truck soon turned in to the driveway of our home. I stepped out and headed around to the back to give my father a hand with the big catch, half carrying – half dragging it back into the garage.

Placing it down on a table, my father then got out his tools.

"You need any help…?" I hesitantly asked, to which he laughed at the request.

My father of all people knew I was disgusted by animals being skinned. "No, no, don't worry. You missed dinner and your mother saved a plate that's hot and ready to eat." He dismissed, and without question I quickly fled into the house.

The dinner my mother had cooked - Fried fish along with corn and rice – had been absolutely delicious. So much so that I almost regretted going hunting with my father, as I wanted the leftovers that my mother tragically sent over to the neighbours.

After the meal, I trotted to the bathroom to take a well needed shower. Feeling the steamy water beat off my back made this peaceful day all the more comforting.

I remained there for a good thirty minutes before there was banging on the door.

"Seth, hurry the hell up!" A voice called from the other side.

It was my sister, Leah. My only sibling. At twenty-two, usually someone would have the basis of their life planned out, and for Leah that was partially true. That is up until a month ago when her soon-to-be husband left her for our second cousin, which practically crushed her. She moved all of her things out of her ex-fiancé, Sam's, and was forced to move back in with us.

"God, I can't believe I'm living with him again." She said; her voice thick with annoyance, which only made me crack a smile.

I heard my mother's faint voice speak up, "Well you're both mature, grown people now so I'm sure you can both work this out and-"

"Get _out_ you doofus!" Leah shouted; interrupting mom as she repeatedly banged on the door.

I quickly dried myself off and put on a pair of fresh clothes. Stepping out of the bathroom I caught Leah leaning against the wall, her face full of loathe, to which I stared directly at her and gave the goofiest grin possible.

"You better have cleaned up your mess." She huffed, pushing her way past.

"Of course, your majesty." I responded, to which I did a gracious bow; laughing as I retreated back to my room.

Sitting on my blue-plaid bed, I reached over to retrieve my bag, taking out the camera and picture yet again. Sighing as my back hit the bed, I stared at the photograph in front of me. It truly was the perfect shot, and I'm sure my photography teacher will agree.

I was grateful that I was now able to really exceed in something I love.

About a year ago, La Push was hit by a minor storm, and while most came out okay, people closer to the ocean got hit pretty hard. The Quileute Tribal School was one of the few buildings that got the roof completely blown off. Since then, all the students on the reservation were relocated to the Forks school system until further notice.

Most complained about the inconvenience, but I couldn't wait. Forks High School had over hundreds of programs that you can get involved in – a ton more in comparison to ours. All in all, for me it was a positive change.

Minus the thirty minute drive.

The remainder of the night I spent on my computer, searching up answers for overdue homework I still had yet to finish for tomorrows class. As the night dragged on, the heavier my eyelids became.

The morning quickly arrived, and I woke up to myself sitting at my desk, drooling like an idiot.

I groaned; stretching my stiff back at I looked over at my alarm clock.

6:59am.

Sluggishly, standing up from the chair, I headed towards the closet. I picked out a good pair of black jeans along with a grey shirt and sweater. Changing out of my pyjamas, the cool morning air hit my skin, making me shiver to the bone.

Afterwards, I gathered my things; put the finished homework in my bag and headed downstairs.

The smell of fresh bacon and eggs met my nose. I breathed it in with delight as I strolled into the kitchen. My mother stood in front of the stove flipping eggs, while my father sat at the table reading the local newspaper.

"Good morning to you both." I said cheerfully, to which they both replied in a sleepy tone. Walking over to sit down at the table, I noticed one of my father's old Quileute books lying on the table.

I always found those books to be interesting - Bizarre in a sense, but interesting nonetheless. Written in them were tales of the spirit warriors; Quileute people who could release their spirits from their bodies, to which they could not physically fight off danger, but instead blow fierce winds and manipulate animals. It all sounded like something from a superhero book - only with less pale faces.

Mom walked over to the table, two plates in hand, and placed them in front of Dad and me. We both said our thanks; giving generous smiles before eagerly digging in.

After breakfast I went to retrieve a jacket; deciding to put on my heavy green winter coat. Snatching my keys off the key rack and announcing my leaving to my parents, I headed out the door.

The chilly morning alerted my senses; my warm breath visible in the air. As I opened the door to the old truck, I tossed my bag in the passenger seat and hopped in.

As I turned the keys, the engine revved for a good few seconds before finally starting. Turning the heat on bust, I then got some mittens out of the glove compartment. Sighing as I slipped them on, I could already feel my hands warm up. I still had a few minutes before I had to be on the road so I fooled around with my camera for the remainder.

Driving on icy roads was definitely something I didn't enjoy, but it beat having to sit on a freezing bus for thirty minutes. Especially since instead of listening to constant chatter, I could instead be listening to music from the stereo. It was relaxing. I don't usually get much time to myself, so this part of the morning was something I look forward too.

The road was peaceful today. It seemed that I got ahead of the traffic, as there were no cars in sight.

But there was a person.

My brows furrowed as I squinted my eyes. In the distance I spotted them. They were on the side of the road, just staring off into the woods.

For a split second I blinked, and they disappeared.

My hands tremored for a second, causing me to slightly go off the road, to which I quickly adjusted back. I felt my heart speed up.

"What the hell was that…?" My voice was barely audible.

I saw movement in the woods. There was something large, moving fast through the trees. The thumping could be heard over the stereo.

That's when it sprung – Jumping onto the road.

Instantly my foot slammed on the break, causing my body to fling forward into the wheel – the seatbelt luckily holding me back from flying through the windshield. I gasped for air as my frightened eyes look ahead.

The beast seemed to also get a fright, as it stood frozen in the middle of the road, standing five feet from the truck and staring directly at me.

Without thinking, my hand shot over to the passenger-side seat and snatched my camera. The beast quickly reacted as went to sprint across the rest of the road. Looking into the lens I traced its movement. As I was about to lose sight of it, I clicked the shutter button.

Seconds of dead silence passed as I stared into the woods. The camera indicated it was printing the picture as I heard its mechanical sound. Wide-eyed, I watched as the white film come out. Hesitantly, I grabbed the paper, quickly shaking it, trying to get it to process as fast as possible.

More seconds passed, until finally I took in the picture in front of me.

It seemed that I only caught the rear side of the beast as it was running into the forest. Scanning every detail, I saw how much it seemed to resemble some sort of dog - minus the fact that it's at least ten times larger. Its fur was pure black.

It felt haunting to look at.

I heard a vehicle coming up behind me, so I quickly tossed the picture aside and started driving.

The different emotions going through my head made me feel excruciatingly anxious. The truck was blazing with heat and my hands were on fire from the mittens, yet my whole body was shaking.

The rest of the ride I tried to calm myself so I didn't look like a complete wreck during school.

Driving through Forks, I soon turned up a hill, the truck slowly advancing as the high school came within sight. I looked in my rear-view mirror; my face looked slightly pale, but other than that I looked fine.

After taking a parking spot, I turned off the truck and waited for a moment; taking a deep breath before putting away the gloves and gathering up my things.

Stepping out of the truck, I slammed the door shut and started to advance towards my first class.

I heard yelling, to which I looked across the lot to see some of the football team on the field practicing.

"How crazy would you have to be…?" I silently said to myself; chuckling at the sight of it all. It was forty-one degrees out yet they were sprinting around in their gear like it was summer.

I walked towards the scene, stopping by the bleachers to take it all in. There were shouts and laughs as they tackled each other into the piles of snow.

"Hey!" A voice called. Looking towards the other side of the field, I saw a figure starting to approach.

Paul Lahote.

The most cocky, arrogant, asshole I've ever known in my entire life.

He was also my best friend.

I cracked a smile as he jogged up to me.

"You know," I started, "usually most people _I_ know wouldn't be so happy-cheery knowing they were going to get hypothermia."

Paul gave a big hearted laugh. "The teams trying to get in as much practice as possible before the spring comes. Coach wasn't too thrilled about it, but she'll come around when she realizes just how much this'll help us."

"Help you get better or help put you in a hospital?" I asked; which only made him further laugh. He then stepped in close, putting his face inches away from mine.

"I'll put you in a hospital, Clearwater." He warned, his cocky smirk plastered on his face.

I gave him a grin before flicking his nose with my finger.

"I'd like to see you _try,_ Lahote." I challenged. "Sadly though, I've got to get to class, so we're going to have to schedule our smack down for some other time."

Thinking back to my schedule, I had photography class first.

I instantly thought back to the _picture._

"Oh by the way…" I spoke up, reaching into my bag. "Want to see what almost totalled my truck today?"

Paul's face turned sour. "What do you mean?" His voice hinted with worry.

I pulled out the photo, passing it over to him. His worried face grew hard.

"Holy shit… It's huge." He breathed. He then looked up to me. "Are you okay? Did you get hurt at all?"

"Yeah, yeah, I'm fine." I brushed him off. "My chest still hurts a bit from slamming into the wheel but other than that I'm okay."

"Okay well let's get you to the nurse's office then." He spoke, slinging his arm around my shoulder and started guiding me.

"P-Paul really, I'm fine." I said, pushing back on his chest. "It's really not that bad. Besides, I don't want to interrupt you're practice."

He paused, turning to me; a sincere look written across his face. "Seth, you're worth missing practice for."

I paused; surprised to hear such a comment. "Aw…" I smiled sweetly, "Look at you getting all sappy for me." I said as I jokingly knocking his chin with my hand. My face turned serious. "Save it for your girlfriend."

We both stared at each other for a moment before I put on a big grin.

Paul sighed at this. "Well okay, but let me know if anything gets worse," He then pointed a finger at me, "promise?"

"Aye-aye, captain!" I said; casually saluting him. I laughed as an even bigger sigh left his mouth.

Sadly, photography class didn't go by fast enough. Not all days were like this though. Usually I would enjoy a straight hour of learning facts about the history of how it came to be, but today the teacher, Ms. Cherny, thought it would be interesting to tell the class about how back in the early nineteenth-century, when cameras used the Daguerreian process, people would have to sit still for hours in order to get their picture taken.

But that wasn't the unbearable part.

What bothered me was learning about postmortem photography. The process of taking pictures of _or_ with deceased loved ones to remember them. While I understood why someone would do this, it was still discomforting.

What made things worse was that Ms. Cherny then insisted that we look at some photographic examples. What shocked me was how almost everyone in the class seemed to enjoy it all.

Besides me, the only other person who didn't seem to have a tolerance for this sort of thing was Angela Weber, as I spotted her squirming in her seat; her eyes constantly glancing up at the screen only to rapidly look away.

As the bell rang, I swung my bag around my shoulder and swiftly exited the room; getting away from that class as quick as possible.

My next period was pre-calculus. Being an advanced maths student was surprisingly easy to say the least. Usually, most junior students wouldn't be caught dead taking an all senior class - as if sitting in a room full of seniors alone wasn't intimidating enough, you'd also have the enormous pressure of taking a course a year above your skill level. Luckily my skills in the subject we're exceedingly good. On top of that, having Paul in the class with me made everything all the more easy. There were definitely perks to having a best friend who was a senior.

Walking into the classroom, I took a seat at my usual desk – One that I shared with Paul. I breathed in as I slowly rubbed my face, trying to get the disturbing memories of the class before out of my mind.

The chair next to me rattled, and as I looked over, there sat Paul. His intimidatingly large frame practically towered over me.

In the past month, Paul has probably put on twenty pounds of muscle - Something that should practically be impossible for a high school boy.

Leaning over, I whispered; "You better hope they don't find those anabolic steroids, or else you're going to get kicked off the team."

A grin stretched over his face as he stared down at me. "Hey, don't underestimate my workout routine. I've been training real hard as of late." He proudly said, sticking his chin up high as he flexed his bicep. I rolled my eyes in response.

"Easy there, Schwarzenegger, it was just a warning." I said, unimpressed, to which I gave a snarky grin, "But you do know that whatever you gain up here," I pointed to his arms, "You're going to lose down there." I finished, as my finger shifted downwards.

Paul gave a pout.

The period continued with Paul explaining in agonizing detail on what kind of "routines" he started doing that made such a drastic effect, and every second I tired concentrating on math while regretting that I brought the topic up.

The day was quick to go by. Before I realised it, I was walking into the lunch room; purchasing a greasy looking pizza for myself. I walked over, taking a seat next to Paul and his friend. Emphasis on _his_ friend, as Paul was the only reason they made conversation with me.

Jared Cameron was that person. He was a football teammate of Paul's. Overall he was an alright guy.

Lately though he's been missing quite a bit of school, and every day he actually shows up he gets an earful from Paul, and it looks like it takes every fibre of his being to not explode onto Paul in the process. Luckily though, Paul wasn't in the mood to argue with him today, and instead they had casual chitchat.

"Hey, babe." A voice sounded from behind. Turning, I spotted Rachel Black leaning over Paul's shoulder. Paul suddenly turned his head, kissing her.

"Hey." His voice was a whisper, his eyes turning hazy.

A gaging noise reached my ears.

I looked over to see Jared imitating like he was about to hurl from seeing the sudden display of affection. I laughed at this, but Paul didn't seem to find it funny as he gave Jared a glare.

"Anyways," Rachel said with a smile on her face, "I just wanted to let you know that I'm leaving early to go to Port Angeles with Kim."

The sounding of Kim's name seemed to catch Jared's attention as you could visually see his ears perk up.

"Oh, okay." Paul whispered, leaning in to kiss her again.

They said their farewells, before Rachel took off through the cafeteria doors.

Paul then turned to me. "Oh, by the way Seth, Rachel was my ride here and since she just left, it looks like you're going to be my ride home."

I sighed. "That's fine I guess."

"Of course…" Paul trailed off, rubbing the back of his head.

"What…?" I asked.

"Well, the thing is, I have football practice so-"

"Absolutely not." My voice came out swift and steady.

"Oh please, Seth!" He begged as he attempted to give me what looked to be a puppy face.

"Why can't you get a ride with Jared?" I asked as I looked towards the man sitting across from us. Paul only gave the man another glare.

"Jared's not going to be at practice - _Again_." He huffed.

I looked towards Jared, only for him to simply turn away from us. Looking back, Paul was still trying to make an awkward attempt at the puppy face.

I let out a long breath. "Fine – But _only_ if you promise to _never_ make that expression again." I said, pointing a finger at him, to which he graciously accepted.

Finishing up lunch, Paul generously took my garbage to bring over to the trash.

As I picked up my bag, I heard a cluster of things hit the floor.

I looked up to see Paul standing there, all of the garbage he was carrying now on the ground, and a guy – who was probably no taller than me – sprawled out on the floor.

It had seemed that the smaller guy accidently bumped into Paul, causing an accident that seemed minimal.

But the look on Paul's face described another story.

Paul stood there, wide-eyed with his top lip curled behind his teeth. His fists were clenched as he was practically shaking from anger.

The boy quickly stood up. "I'm so sorry, that was my fault-"

" _Watch where you're going, you dumbass!" Paul roared._

I flinched.

The whole cafeteria seemed to turn their attention to the scene.

The boy stood there, eyes wide in shock. "I-I'm sorry, it was an a-accident-"

" _Bullshit!"_ Paul cut him off again. He was fuming.

The boy stood there, frozen.

Before even realizing it, I was approaching Paul. As he was about to shout more words, I gently grabbed his arm. Paul's head whipped towards me, hostility written all over.

I simply stared at him, my eyes wide. It took him a second to realize who grabbed him, but as he realized it was me, his face slowly began to soften. We stared at each other for a few seconds, before I spoke up.

"Paul…?" I whispered.

His face remained wide-eyed, but no longer hostile. Instead he looked frightened. He slowly turned back to the boy, as his head hung low.

"Sorry…" he mumbled, before quickly breaking loose from my grasp and walking out the cafeteria – everyone's eyes following him until he was out of sight.

I was left standing there; my hand burning from the heat…?

A few moments passed before I crouched to the ground and started picking up the mess. "Sorry." I said to the boy; throwing away the garbage and following Paul.

Or at least that's what I had planned to do, but as I walked out, Paul was nowhere in sight.

The remainder of the day was spent with me replaying the events of lunch over and over in my head. It was all so bizarre.

I had never in all my life seen Paul act that way before; even compared to the maddest I've ever seen him. He looked like he was about to try and attack the boy - possibly even try to kill him. It was frightening to think about.

After my last class ended, I quickly headed towards my locker to retrieve my coat. After quickly shoving it on, I slammed the door closed only to be met with a face.

It was the boy. And along side of him was Angela Webber.

"Hi Seth," The boy spoke.

I stood there, frozen and unable to think of anything to say.

He then tilted his head. "Is there something wrong?" He asked.

"N-no," I sputtered out. "I just didn't think you knew my name – Considering I don't really know yours…" My voice drifted off, which only made the boy smile.

"Angela told me." He said, pointing to the girl next to him. She waved – I then returning the gesture. "I'm Ben by the way." To which he then held out his hand. Shaking it, I gave a slight smile.

"I just wanted to thank you for stepping in today. I don't know what would have happened if you hadn't."

"O-oh no please, don't thank me," I said, holding my hand out in defense, "I'm sorry that that even had to happen to you…"

"No it's fine, and that's all thanks to you. Really man, I owe you."

I was about to object, but they both then said their farewells, walking off and leaving me stunned.

I made way through the school doors; the ice cold air brushing against my skin. Walking out to the truck, I paused, remembering that I'm supposed to be driving Paul home.

Driving around and parking in the parking spaces by the field; I spotted Paul in his gear, laughing along with his friends as if the events at lunch didn't even happen.

I couldn't understand it.

Having an entire hour to pass, I decided to lift my legs up onto the wheel, turn the music on low; listening as the steady beats of the music helped me slowly relax.

There was a nocking.

My eyes shot open. Looking ahead I saw the football field, but it was empty.

The nocking sounded again.

Confused at where the sound was coming from, I looked to my right. Through the passenger side window, I saw Paul standing there, his face pressed into the glass; giving the goofiest expression.

I couldn't stop the smile forming on my face. Knowing what he wanted, I reached over, manually unlocking the passenger door.

"Hello, sleepyhead," Paul chimed as he opened the door. He tossed his bag in the middle seat along with mine and sat down; shutting the door behind him.

"How was practice?" I asked, a yawn escaping my mouth in the process.

He shrugged. "Same old, same old I guess."

"Wow, how exciting." I chuckled, turning on truck and backing out.

We we're on the road for about ten minutes and neither of us had spoken. It wasn't a comforting silence though, as both of us we're thinking about the same thing, but neither of us knew how to bring it up.

Paul spoke first.

"I'm sorry…" He whimpered.

I swallowed hard.

"I don't know what happened back there." He took a deep breath. "When that guy bumped into me and I dropped everything, I just…"

"…Yeah?" My voice came out in a whisper.

"I just started seeing red. I felt like I lost touch with myself. Before I knew it I was screaming, and I didn't even know why."

He looked ashamed.

"It's okay," I said, "it's okay to make mistakes. You apologized to him and that's what matters."

He let out a ragged breath. "But I didn't…"

Now I was confused.

"What do you mean?" I asked, looking over to him.

"I didn't apologise to him… I apologised to you."

His face was written with guilt.

"I was about to hit you…" He whispered. "I saw that it was you who grabbed me and for a split second I _questioned_ if I was going to…"

I felt my gut sink.

"How could I even think that...?" He said, clenching his fists. "How could I even contemplate the fact of hitting my best friend when he did absolutely nothing wrong?"

He fell silent for the rest of the drive.

As we entered the town of La Push, I steered the car down a gravel road.

Soon turning into Paul's house, I parked the truck. Shutting off the engine, I glanced towards him; his gaze never leaving the window. Even without seeing his face, I could tell how upset he was about the situation.

I reached a hand over to comfort him.

When the tips of my fingers grazed his arm, my hand shot back.

Paul turned his head to look at me. My face was widened with shock, which only alarmed him.

"Seth? What's wrong?" He asked, panicked.

I looked down to my hand, feeling the lingering sting, as if I just touched the burner of a stove.

Simply extending my hand back over, I inched towards the man next to me. The tips grazed his arm again, and my shock only increased. I pressed my whole hand against him, then my other.

My palms felt like they were burning at the touch.

"Holy hell, Paul… You're so hot…"

Paul then gave me the oddest look I've ever seen, but I only continued.

"Paul you're burning up… like really badly." I then pressed a hand against his forehead. It was just as bad – if not worse.

"You need to get to a hospital." I said, my voice stricken with panic, but Paul only stopped me, taking my hands in his own.

"Seth, I feel completely fine. Are you sure _you're_ feeling okay, though?" He asked in a worried tone.

"I-I'm fine! You're the one who's not fine! Jeez Paul, how can you not realize that your skin is boiling hot?" I shouted, but it only seemed to confuse the boy more.

"Seth, I'm perfectly fine." His brow crinkled. "Maybe you should get home and get some rest…"

Did he really not feel it? Did he truly feel fine? Was it all just in my head? There were so many questions racing around.

"O-okay…" I admitted defeat.

Paul stared at me for a moment.

"Okay." He said, before grabbing his bag and stepping out of the truck. "I'll see you tomorrow…?" He asked before smiling.

"Y-yeah, see you tomorrow." I agreed.

He gave me one final glance before closing the door, then took off into his home.

In a way, that was the last time I saw my _best friend_ , Paul Lahote.


	2. Fish Fry

_**Fish Fry**_

* * *

February was ending. The thin sheets of snow outside were slowly melting from the approaching spring.

It's been three weeks since I've seen Paul.

The day after the accident in the cafeteria, Paul didn't show up for school. I assumed that he actually _did_ have the flu, and later that day when I called his house, his father answered, saying that he came down with a case of the chicken pox. I had no reason to question it.

But it's been _three weeks_. I called his house a few times, but every time his father answered, and he just kept saying the same thing, so I stopped trying. Things were getting strange. Chicken pox definitely didn't last that long, and the longer I waited, the more I noticed things didn't add up. There was no way chicken pox was the cause of Paul practically radiating heat off of his body. Plus, I was almost sure that Paul had the pox when we were kids.

People at school began to question where he was. His friends on the football team didn't seem too happy about his absence either, considering along with Jared they were down two players.

The more time that past, the more I began to think that there was something else. Like some other piece to the puzzle that needed to be found.

I paced towards the phone; taking it up in my hands and dialling the Lahote household. It rang a few times before I heard someone pick up.

"Hello?" A burly voice spoke.

"Hi Mr. Lahote, its Seth."

"Oh," he didn't sound surprised, "What can I do for you, Seth?"

"I was just phoning for Paul. Is he home?"

"Yes, but I'm afraid he can't come to the phone. He's in bed - stricken with the flu." He added.

"The flu?" I was unconvinced.

"Y-yes, he caught it a few days ago. The poor boy can't catch a break." He chuckled.

I remained silent, which seemed to make the man uncomfortable.

He then spoke up. "Uh, well Seth I'm afraid I'm going to have to let you go. Speak to you later."

"Oh, well okay goodbye-" The line went dead.

Something was definitely going on.

Or was there? Was I just being too paranoid? Maybe Paul really was just sick.

I needed a distraction.

Hanging up the phone, I walked to the kitchen to get something quick to eat; settling for leftover lasagna from dinner last night. Quickly unwrapping and dumping it onto a plate, I shoved it into the microwave, my fingers quickly hitting a few buttons.

I stood there, leaning against the kitchen counter, hundreds of thoughts invading my mind as I listened to the loud humming of the machine next to me.

Growing impatient, I took the plate out of the microwave; striding over to the table.

With each jab of the fork, I picked up another slice of cold lasagna, instantly swallowing as it entered my mouth. I felt too distracted to chew.

Sighing as I finished, I walked over to the sink to wash the plate off, splashing water onto my face afterwards.

I spent the remainder of the day in my room, lying on my bed, studying anything and everything I could for a calculus quiz we had tomorrow.

I tried my best to keep my focus on the notebook in front of me, but which each line read, my eyes started to slowly inch their way shut.

" _Seth…"_ My eyes shot open.

I could already tell I was dreaming.

In front of me were trees, towering over, almost covering the pitch black sky. I sat up, looking around, wondering where the voice came from.

" _Seth…"_ It called again, harsher this time. I was on my feet now, searching for who was calling me.

" _Seth…"_

The voice was untraceable, as if it were coming from everywhere around me. I started walking, my head rapidly looking in every direction. As seconds past, I felt myself becoming distraught.

A shriek sounded.

I wiped my head in the direction of the sound. I knew the voice, but I couldn't place who it was. I hesitated to follow, until I heard it again.

" _Seth!"_ It cried.

I was running – no, sprinting towards them; my heart viciously trying to break free from the chambers of my chest.

They screamed again.

"Paul!" I shouted out. My legs felt sluggish, and my balance was being tested as my whole body was shaking.

"Paul!" I shouted again.

I was crying; the tears blurring my vision, making me trip up over the ground I could no longer see. If this is a dream, why does it feel so horrible? Everything felt so real.

I saw something in the distance. It was big; its body so dark you could barely see it through the night. But it was no longer night. The sky burned a bright red, yet casted no light. The world around me felt as it was falling apart.

It was the _beast_ – the one from the other day. It was hovering over something – someone.

"Paul!" I cried out. I kept running towards him, but he didn't move; his body lifeless. The beast started charging. It's speed unmatchable. Within milliseconds it was in front of me, ready to deal the killing blow.

I jolted; my body feeling as if it were flying – until I hit the floor with a thud.

A groan escaped my lips. I pressed my hands against the cool wooden floor, pushing my aching-self up.

I looked towards the alarm clock, seeing at it read 4:35 AM. Sluggishly, I climbed back up onto my bed, wrapping the sweat-filled blankets back around me.

I fell back to sleep, feeling as if though the black beast were watching me.

The door to my truck slammed shut. I let out a loud yawn, rubbing my eyes hard in an attempt to wake myself up. It didn't help that it was only forty-six degrees out; the cold only made me want to curl up in my bed even more. I stalked across the parking lot and into the building. I was late getting to school this morning, and I blamed it on my lack of sleep.

Photography class dragged on longer than I had liked, but it did give me more time to study for the quiz I had.

The bell rang. I took my time getting up from my seat and gathering my things. Angela Weber gave me a smile and wave as she passed by my desk - I happily returning the gesture.

After the incident a few weeks ago with Ben Cheney – which I had learned was Angela's boyfriend; both he and Angela have been quite friendly towards me. I was grateful for this, as my only other friend had seemed to all but forgotten about me.

Of course though, I probably _was_ being a tad overdramatic with the whole Paul situation. But even realising that didn't stop my mind from going wild with possibilities and explanations. It was all just one big headache to think about. Walking through the halls, I tried my absolute hardest not to knock into anyone as my head once again went wild with speculation.

Paul wasn't in calculus, but I wasn't surprised.

The quiz the teacher gave out was difficult to say the least. I cursed under my breath as I tried to think back to the problems I studied last night before I idiotically fell asleep. I sighed, knowing it would take a miracle for me to get above a C on this.

For lunch I walked out to my truck, sitting up in it while eating the sandwich I brought. This has been my usual routine for the past week, as I figured if I was going to sit alone, I might as well listen to music to keep me occupied.

The remainder of the day seemed to fly by fast, and before I knew it I was in my truck again, driving down the backroad to La Push.

Pulling in, I saw no other cars in the driveway, to which I quickly remembered that mom and Leah would be gone to Seattle for the weekend, so it would be just me and dad. I stepped into the house, not bothering to announce my arrival as I already knew my father was still at work.

I planned on getting a head start on some homework, but as I glanced at the table, noticed a slip of paper – one from my mom.

Written down was a set of instructions; I would have to go out and buy groceries, to which I got a separate list of everything that I needed. She also said that there was a paper bag in the fridge which contained some of dad's homemade fish, and that I would need to deliver it to Chief Swan in Forks; saying that on the back of the grocery list was directions to the Chief's home.

Looks like I wasn't going to get any work done after all.

I snatched the list off the table. Walking to the fridge I retrieved the fish and retreated back out the door.

First things first, I had to get this fish delivered before it stunk out my truck. I found myself aimlessly driving around Forks as I tried to find my bearings. Each time I thought I was getting somewhere; I would just end up passing the same beat-down red house that I passed moments ago. It took me a good twenty minutes longer than it should have but I finally found myself pulling into the driveway of a two story house.

Picking up the bag, I stepped out of my truck. Noticing the police car in the driveway, I let myself relax, knowing that I did in fact get the right house.

I knocked on the door a few times before a familiar face greeted me.

"Well hello there, Seth. What brings you here today?" The man asked in a welcoming tone.

"Hi Chief Swan, -"

"Please Seth; I've known you all my life, call me Charlie." He cut me off.

I smiled. Charlie was always nonchalant, so it didn't surprise me that he didn't much care about mannerisms.

"Charlie." I corrected. "I came on by to give you a delivery," to which I then held out the bag; "my dad's homemade fish fry."

Charlie's face instantly lit up. "Oh, great!" He said with delight, taking the bag from my hand. "Thanks so much, kid. So what are you up to today anyways?"

"Nothing too much, just doing some errands. I have to go pick up groceries after this." I gave a smile.

"Oh, well don't let an old dude like me keep you any further then." Charlie said, nonchalantly waving me away with a smile.

I found myself chuckling at his words. "Okay. I'll see you later, Chief!" I waved, watching him disappear into the house.

After I arrived at Thriftway, I learned that the store having sales on all kinds of stuff, so it was no wonder my mother wanted me to get everything today.

The place was packed with shoppers left and right, but my small frame let me navigate through the crowd with ease. With each item added to my basket, I crossed said thing off my list.

I walked down an isle in search of cans of mushrooms. Spotting them, I took the last four off the shelf. As I was about to cross it off, I noticed that my mom specifically indicated that she needed five. I looked around, searching for one more, only to groan as I spotted them. They were on the top shelf, and there didn't seem to be any stool I could step on.

I resorted to jumping in an attempting to snatch it off, failing each time. I felt the blood rush to my face as I noticed people around giving me strange looks. After a few more attempts I sighed in defeat. She could make do with four, right?

As I was about to walk away, a hand reached out, grabbing the can off the rack, placing it into my basket. My eyes whipped towards the owner.

Quil Ateara – the fifth. He's the grandson of old Quil; a friend of my fathers. A bright smile was radiating off his face - as usual. He usually hung around Jacob Black and Embry Call, so it felt almost unnatural to see him without the other two.

"It's Seth, right?" He asked. His tenor voice was soothing.

I smiled back nodding. "Yes. And you're Quil." I more so stated than asked. He returned the nod. "Thanks for the help. I was about to lose my mind knowing that I wasn't going to be able to buy them all out." I awkwardly joked, but he seemed to genuinely laugh at it. "So where are Jacob and Embry? It's strange not seeing the three of you together."

His expression grew dim. "Well Jake had to help his father with some stuff today." He then paused; face unreadable. "Embry well… Embry decided to join Sam's cult, so he doesn't speak to me or Jake anymore."

I gave him an odd look. "Sam's cult? What's that?" I questioned.

"Sam Uley. He has this sort of pack that follows him around and practically worships his every move. They flaunt around the reservation, acting like they own the place." The bitterness was clear. His voice became faint. "Beats me on what they all see in him."

Sam had a pack of worshipers? And apparently Embry Call had joined it. It sounded unbelievably bizarre.

"Who else is in this… _pack?_ " I questioned.

"Well there are four of them. Sam and Embry of course, and then I think there's… that Jared Cameron guy-"

Jared? What's he doing hanging around with Sam?

"- and I think Paul Lahote." He finished.

My eyes widened.

"P-Paul?" I stuttered out.

"Yeah, I think he joined a few weeks back. Not surprising, I always thought Paul was _that_ type of person, 'ya know?"

 _That type?_ What the hell does that even mean?

I felt myself become irritated with the boy in front of me. Luckily, he spoke up, saying he had to leave. I was glad, as I wasn't able to say anything I would later regret.

As I continued my shopping, I felt myself becoming more distracted. Why was Paul hanging around with Sam Uley? I thought he was bed-stricken, unable to move or even talk to me on the phone, let alone be wondering around with my sister's ex-fiancé.

Purchasing the things I picked up, I walked out of the store, my mind running wild from the new information. I put the grocery bags at the foot of the passenger side of the truck and started the engine; to which I swiftly drove out of the parking lot.

My thoughts were quick to be interrupted as my stomach growled. I contemplated on whether I wanted to cook anything home. In the end, I found myself making a snap decision, turning the truck into one of those fast food chains.

I was parked in a parking lot; a greasy burger in hand as I sat up in my truck. With each bite, my teeth ripped the burger apart. There was anger in me, and all of it was directed at Paul.

I made it home from Forks within twenty-two minutes – driving way over the speed limit. With a grunt I dropped all the bags onto the counter before putting it all away with a sour look on my face.

The conclusion I had come to was that Paul was simply avoiding me. There was no other explanation. He lied to me. He was lying to me and didn't even have the guts to say it himself.

He got his father to do it for him for gods sake!

I dropped the eggs into the fridge – probably a bit too harshly.

I wanted to confront him. Accuse him of avoiding me and ask what I did to him, because hell, I certainly don't know. I only felt myself growing angrier.

"What did those cans of mushrooms do to you?"

I jumped, whipping my head in surprise. My father stood there, taking off his jacket, giving me a strange look.

It was then I noticed that I had been slamming the cans down in the cupboard awfully hard.

"S-sorry, I just got a lot on my mind."

"Why don't you tell me about it; preferably as you warm me up some stew?" He winked at that last part. I rolled my eyes.

Reaching into the cupboard I took out a jar, to which I then grabbed a pot and placed it onto the stove.

"Well…" I started as I tipped the jar upside down, letting the contents fall into the pot. "Paul hasn't spoken to me in three weeks. His father keeps telling me he's got the flu but I know there's something else going on…" I looked over to my father; his eyes wide.

He cleared his throat before speaking. "Well um, maybe Paul is going through some stuff right now. I know I'm not too good on advice, but I do think that maybe you should just give him a little space." I looked to him, shocked from what he had just told me. His gaze didn't meet mine.

"I think three weeks is plenty of space." I huffed.

Both of us remained silent.

As the stew finished, I dumped the continents into a bowl and dropped in in front of my father without a word.

I walked out of the room as he mumbled a 'thank you.'

My mind was too cluttered to do the homework assigned. I settled for going on my computer, distracting myself with mindless games like Pinball and minesweeper.

Quil's words kept repeating in my head.

' _Sam's pack_.'

What exactly did ' _Sam's_ _pack'_ do anyway? What was Paul's role in this pack? Does he really mindlessly follow Sam around? I found such a thing hard to believe – especially for Paul.

Paul's not the type of person to take orders from people; this I knew for a fact. Maybe he was being forced? Was Sam somehow blackmailing him? As I hit a mine for the thirtieth time in minesweeper, I decided to shut the computer off.

I really needed to get some air.

Grabbing my truck keys and my bag, I headed down stairs.

"Where are you off to?" My father said, glancing up from the television.

"Just going for a stroll." I responded, running out the door and shutting it behind me.

I drove around La Push for a bit, taking in the scenery that hasn't changed since I was a kid. I guess that's what happens in a rural town – absolutely nothing.

After mindlessly wandering, I found myself parked at the beach. Watching as the waves crashed into shore was peaceful to say the least.

This was where Paul and I spent most of our childhood. As kids we use to beg our parents to take us to the beach every weekend; cheering our asses off when they did and crying our eyes out when they didn't.

Then Paul moved away. Unlike me, Paul didn't originate from the reservation. He was born in Tacoma. His parents moved to La Push when he was just an infant. When I heard the news that my best friend was going to be moving back to his birth place, I was practically crushed.

It didn't last long though. Paul's parent's divorced when he was just eight, so his father decided to move back; taking Paul along with him. I had gotten Paul back, and we had become more inseparable than before.

Of course, we weren't kids anymore. Paul has his own life, and it seems that I'm no longer a part of it.

A person flickered from the corner of my eye, to which I then spotted them.

For a moment, I was confused as to what I was seeing. They were emerging from the tree line. Sam Uley was the first to walk out, his face neutral – cold looking. Behind him was Jared. He was laughing, a grin plastered on his face.

Embry Call was next to him, laughing along to whatever had been said. The last time I saw the boy, his hair was past his shoulders in waves, but now it was cut short. As different as it was, it suited him.

My breath hitched as I saw who was last.

Paul.

He was walking close behind the others, a smirk forming from the corners of his mouth. I felt some form of shock. Nothing about him changed, yet somehow he looked completely different. He looked more… Intimidating. His whole demeanour was more aggressive.

He didn't look like the boy I called my best friend.

Sam caught my eye. He was looking at me, and I did nothing but stare back, expressionless. He was saying something; Paul's eyes then quickly darting towards me, his face growing hard.

I rapidly looked away, letting out the breath I was holding.

Was he going to come over? Or was he going to continue his streak and ignore me further. How was this going to play out? I prayed that he would come over and we'd talk like we normally do, but I couldn't steer away from the negative thoughts that heavily clouded my mind not letting me think straight.

A knock sounded on my window, making me jump in surprise.

Paul stood there with a grim look on his face; his gaze not meeting mine. I quickly rolled down the window.

It took a few seconds before I was able to speak.

"Hi…" I whispered. He didn't say anything. Moments passed as I felt all of the emotions I was holding in come out in waves from the cesspool within me, but I didn't let them bubble to the surface.

His face kept scrunching up as he started downwards. He wanted to say something – I could see it in his eye, but he didn't know how.

The first emotion shot out like a geyser.

Irritation.

" _Are you just going to stand there or are you going to say something?"_ I snapped, harsher than I should have. He only flinched at the words.

Sam and the other two seemed to pack off, giving us privacy.

"I'm sorry…" He whimpered in a pathetic sounding tone, which only had pissed me off more.

I breathed, knowing that being angry wasn't going to make anything better. "For what?"

"Seth, we… we can't be friends anymore." He spoke. My head shot back up towards him, his face still glued to the ground, refusing to look at me.

All of the emotions I felt seemed to vanish, as I now just felt confusion and… fear.

"E-excuse me…?"

"I'm sorry." His face looked as though he was in pain. "It's just not going to work anymore."

I was breathing faster. My heart was pounding out of my chest. I couldn't comprehend the words spoken to me. My mouth tried to form words, only to fail each time.

"What are you even saying?" I finally let out. "What, like, you j-just don't want to be friends anymore? Like what does that even mean y-you can't just-"

"Seth," He cut me off, "please don't make this harder than it has to be."

"Is this about Sam?" The name came out like acid. "Why the hell are you hanging around with him?" I demanded to know.

" _That's_ _none of your business_." He hissed.

"Stop with the bullshit." Despite myself falling apart, my voice was steady. "What is this all about? You ignore me for weeks, get your father to make up pathetic lies and now you're following around Sam Uley like a lost puppy?"

"Sam is helping me!" He screamed, shoving his fist into the door of the truck.

I was shocked. He was shaking, just like that day in the cafeteria.

"Paul…" It was Sam speaking in the distance, his voice full of warning. Paul glared at the man, only to turn around – but still not looking at me.

"This is over, Seth." He simply stated.

"N-No… No!" I subconsciously began to raise my voice. "You can't stop being friends with me! You just can't!"

Moments went by, but Paul didn't speak.

"What did I do wrong?" I begged to know. "Please, just tell me so I can fix it!"

Silence again.

All he did was stare at the damn ground.

" _Paul, look at me!"_ I demanded.

His eyes met mine, and suddenly, it felt as if the whole world came to a stop. Tears had begun streaming down my face.

He stood there, his eyes widened and mouth hung open. He looked shocked. The shock turned to confusion, and confusion turning fearful.

 _He looked as if his whole world shifted from under him._

"I have to go…" He whispered.

Before I got the chance to speak, he was gone – Running back to the tree line. The other three quickly following his trail, all looking confused.

My hand viciously grabbed the clutch. Hauling it into reverse, I swiftly turned the truck – Putting it back into drive – and drove home without a second thought.

The road was barely visible from the tears pouring down. Turning into the driveway, I opened the door, slamming it hard behind me before entering the house.

My father was thankfully asleep on the couch, so he didn't hear my arrival or the silent sobs coming from me. My legs shook as I took each step upstairs.

Entering my room, I locked the door behind me, stripped off my clothing and then climbed into bed, not caring that the cold breeze seeped through the wide open window.

The sizzle of bacon made my stomach growl. I stood over the stove, frying pan in hand as I flipped the strips of meat repeatedly. My mind felt numb – as if it had been froze over.

My father left a few hours ago – my guess was hunting – so I was free to leave my room without the worry that I might break down at any given moment.

I hadn't slept well last night. I woke up to myself crying in the middle of the night from a dream that I couldn't quite remember.

Yesterday was probably the worst day of my life. It has left me so lost and confused. But neither of those compared to the sadness I felt.

A hole had been punched through my chest.

I placed the crispy pieces of bacon on a plate, before dumping the dishes into the sink and taking my plate with me into the living room.

Saturday morning cartoons were on – Ed, Edd n Eddy specifically.

It probably seemed childish to enjoy such things, but their mindless humour helped me take my mind of stressful events going on in my life. Today it didn't seem to be working though, as all I could think about was the fact that mine and Paul's friendship was over.

The worst part was I had no clue as to why, and each time I think back to yesterday, the more it seemed that Paul didn't want it to end either.

I wanted to accuse Sam Uley for all of this, but the fact that Paul said that Sam was 'Helping him' has me thinking otherwise.

How was Sam 'helping' Paul? What did Paul need help with anyways? Was he in trouble with the mafia or something?

The longer I thought about it all the more crazy my ideas seemed to get. But there was one thing I knew for certain.

Something strange was going on in La Push. And it all seemed to start that day, when I almost hit that… beast.

That person on the road who disappeared in thin air, Paul's burning skin and intense anger, and Paul and Jared always missing school, and Sam's pack. It all felt connected.

I put the now empty plate down on the coffee table. Stretching my body out on the couch, I laid my head back on the armrest.

Whatever was going on, for the sake of mine and Paul's friendship, I was going to get to the bottom of it.


	3. Orange Bullet

_**Orange Bullet**_

* * *

The magnificent blue sky made an appearance today, which in itself was quite strange, since the entire week, half of the peninsula experienced heavy snow fall, which probably would be the last one for the winter. It was the middle of March, and to me, spring could not come sooner. Don't get me wrong though, I enjoy the winter as much as the next person, but when you have to walk between buildings to get to different classes, you get tired of the cold pretty fast. Times like these almost made me miss the school on the reservation.

 _Almost._

I tapped the snow off my boots while entering the doors to the cafeteria. Strolling over towards an empty table, I sat down, making myself comfortable before pulling a book out of my bag.

Lately I've been finding myself researching almost anything I could. From various books on quadruped animals to mythology, I was searching for anything that came close to what I saw _that day_. The book I was currently reading was called Celtic Myths and Legends. It was a book recently made on Irish folk lore. Definitely a more entertaining read compared to the other stuff, though deep down, I knew that any sort of book like this probably wasn't going to help me find what I was looking for, but I was getting desperate.

So far I wasn't able to find anything that even slightly resembled what that beast looked like, as its shape compared to that of some dog or wolf-like creature, but with height similar to – if not bigger – than a horse. I couldn't find a single thing that fit that description.

I became so engrossed with what I was reading that I didn't notice the two figures that stood across the table.

"Seth?" A feminine voice asked.

I looked up from the pages to see Angela Webber along with her boyfriend, Ben Cheney.

"May we sit with you today?" She asked, giving a smile.

"Uh, yeah of course, take a seat." I replied.

They graciously sat down, placing their lunch trays in front of them.

Ben was quick to notice the lack of food. "You're not eating?" He then paused. "Unless your one of those people who like to consume paper." He gave a devilish grin.

"I had a big breakfast." I chuckled.

"Celtic Myths and Legends?" Angela asked, eyeing the book in my hands, to which she gave me a strange look. "Not really the book the average teenager would be reading."

I put my bookmark into the spine, closing it up and placing it next to me. "Yeah, I'm kind of trying to find something, but I'm not having much luck."

"Oh, and what would that be exactly?"

"Well…" I trailed off, almost embarrassed as to what I was about to say. "About a month and a half ago, I was driving to school when I almost hit some kind of animal. It was huge and it gave me a good fright. Ever since then I've been trying to find out what it was."

"Was it a bear?" Ben was quick to question, eagerly looking at me.

"I… really have no idea." I said, honestly.

He seemed to slum down into his chair at the response.

"Why do you ask?" I continued on.

"Well," Angela started, "about a week ago, Ben and I decided to go hiking the trails since it was a nice out, but it got cut short when we spotted something big… big and dark. Almost like a bear." She added.

"A bear?"

"You don't believe us either, huh?" Ben said.

"N-no, I believe you." I lied. It was hard to imagine a bear so close to a hiking trail, especially during the winter.

' _Big and dark.'_

The words quickly registered. Did they see the beast? The same one I saw that day? Now that I think about it, it did have a bear-ish quality – at least for how big it was.

"What trail did you see it on?" The words left my mouth before I could think of what I was saying.

"It's the one just north of Newton's Olympic Outfitters – the hiking store." Angela responded.

I could see Ben's eyes widening. "You don't plan on walking the trail, do you?"

"No, of course not." I lied again.

The remainder of lunch was spent with the two of them bickering on what to do this weekend while I awkwardly sat there quietly until it was time to head to class.

The end of the school day soon arrived, and I was more thankful than ever. During my classes, I had planned out most of my weekend.

I had to find that trail.

After school I would go buy some hiking gear at that place Angela mentioned, and then tomorrow I could walk the trails in hopes of possibly spotting that beast again.

As I walked down the now empty hallways towards my locker, a familiar face caught my attention.

Rachel Black. She was standing next to her locker. But what had caught my eye was the fact that she was crying, and no one had noticed. Despite the girl trying to hide her face, I could easily hear the quiet sobs from where I stood, and I wanted to simply walk past and pretend I hadn't had noticed like the rest, but I knew that Paul wasn't here, so I felt almost obligated to help her.

I felt my gut sink at the thought of Paul.

Shaking my head, I silently made my way over to her.

"Hey Rachel." I casually said, to which she had jumped; surprised at my sudden appearance.

"Oh, hi Seth." She sniffled.

"Is there something wrong?"

"Um…" Her voice went silent, as she seemed almost hesitant to tell me. "P-Paul sort of… broke up with me."

A wave of shock overcame me as the words registered. "What…?" I questioned.

"He broke up with me." She repeated, to which she then gave me a saddened look. "I don't know why. He just kept repeating 'I'm not the right one for him' or something like that."

I was flabbergasted. Paul loved Rachel. I knew that for a fact; which furthermore confused me as to why he would break up with her. She's not the right one? That couldn't be further from the truth. I've seen the way Paul looked at Rachel. I've heard the way he talked about her. He cared so much for the girl, so it was extremely hard to believe he didn't feel that way anymore.

Something was definitely going on with the boy.

"You ready to go, Rach?" A voice asked.

I looked over from my shoulder to see a girl; one with russet skin skin much like my own, and brown slightly wavy hair reaching past her shoulders. If I wasn't mistaken, her name was Kim.

When her head turned in my direction, I expected some sort of friendly smile on her face, but I was met with a sour – almost disgusted look.

"Yeah, let's go." Rachel sniffed again. "See you around, Seth." She spoke, before walking away; Kim quickly following behind.

I stood there for a moment, stunned as to what just happened. Did Kim not like me? I don't ever remember speaking with the girl, so no ideas came to mind as to why she looked at me the way she did. Maybe she was just having one of those days.

Leaving the school, I turned onto the road and was on my way to Newton's Olympic Outfitters. Thankfully Coach Clapp – the gym teacher – was able to give me a set of detailed directions. I drove north of the school for about twenty minutes before I finally noticed a sign telling me I found what I was looking for. Turning into the lot, I parked my beaten down truck before hopping out and heading on through the doors of the store; the warm hair quickly hit my face in a gust as I entered.

"Hello!" A bright voice cheered. Across the room stood a woman; her hair a light blonde and her face looking not a day over forty. She was behind a counter, watching my arrival with eagerness. "My name is Karen. I'm one of the owners of this store." She said with a touch of proudness. "If you need any help at all, please let me know!"

"T-thank you!" I stuttered out, surprised to see how upbeat she was. I was quick to get to work, as I retrieved items I knew I would need for tomorrow. Things such as a map of the area, a first aid kit, a flashlight, et cetera. As I brought the items up to the counter, a figure burst in through the doors of the store.

"I'm here!" A boy called, quickly hurrying over to the counter.

"Mike, you're late." The woman behind the counter – who I had already forgotten the name of – spoke.

"I know, I know." He brushed her off. "Tyler's car wouldn't start so I thought I could lend a hand."

"And did you fix it?" Her voice was stern.

The boy paused at the question, only to look away, mumbling a quiet 'No' in the process. The woman only sighed at this.

"The poor boy." The woman spoke. "First he got his van written off from that accident and now his second one is already failing him." Her eye quickly caught mine again. "Oh dear, I'm sorry for wasting your time. Let me ring those up for you."

She then proceeded to check out my items, putting each one nicely into a plastic bag. I quickly paid before scurrying back out the doors.

Before heading back on to La Push, I dropped into the camera store to buy some more film. I took my time though, as I looked through all the digital cameras the store had, and it tortured me how much I wanted one. They were all definitely out of my budget though.

Returning home, I stepped in through the door with just the camera film in hand. I left the hiking gear in my truck, knowing that my parents would never allow me to go hiking alone, so it was better to just leave them out of it. Walking into the kitchen, I greeted my mother as she stood over the stove, cooking what smelled to be pasta. She greeted me and smiled.

Her stare lingered though.

These past few weeks, both my mother and father have unconsciously been giving me these strange looks. I didn't know why, and the more it happened, the more I wanted to ask them what it was all about, but I decided to let it be, knowing they probably wouldn't tell me anyways.

As I retreated up to my room, I walked down the hallway towards my door; only to catch sight of my sister coming out from nowhere, to which she gently bumped into me.

" _Watch where you're going!"_ She hissed out.

I jumped back a little, surprised from her sudden outburst. "Sorry, I was just-"

"You have eyes, Seth. Use them." She scowled, strutting past me.

I stared daggers at her back before continuing on into my room.

Resting on my bed, I hauled the book out from my bag, opening the marked page and began reading. Hours passed as I read line to line about each Celtic myth, studying their gods and goddesses, hoping that one of them will be able to give me some sort of answer as to what I've been looking for.

I glanced over to my alarm clock, only to groan as I read that it was past twelve AM. I tossed the book aside, not bothering to mark the page I read last. I felt that I was looking in all the wrong places, but I didn't know what would guide me in the right direction.

I prayed that the hike tomorrow would help give me some answers.

I got out of bed at ten, hoping that it was late enough for everyone to have already left the house. I was right in that assumption. I looked outside the window, seeing the slushy snow outside, covering as far as I could see. I went to the coat closet to grab some mittens along with a pair of boots and a scarf. I didn't plan on getting the flu today, so I had to be at least somewhat cautious.

My cooking skills weren't the best, so I made a simple tuna sandwich which I had shoved into a plastic bowl with a lid on top. Chucking it into my bag, I then went to retrieve other things I wanted to take with me, and I was then out the door before the clock struck noon.

My grip on the wheel was unstable. I felt anxious for what I was about to do, as I knew that it would be anything but safe, but I couldn't almost help but feel excited. It felt as if though my subconscious was telling me that whatever is going on with this beast, it was somehow related to my situation with Paul, and that in itself brought me happiness. Happiness in hopes that one day we can be friends again.

Of course, if I did somehow manage to spot the beast, and vice versa, I brought my father's bow and arrow just in case.

Entering into Forks, I drove into the direction of where Angela said the path would be – past the Olympic Outfitters. As I drove on by the store, I started to carefully scan the road, waiting for a path to reveal itself from either side of the woods. As the stirring of the slush under my truck became heavier, my eyes caught sight of what I've been looking for. It was hard to miss. I guessed the trail was quite popular to walk on, as it has its own parking spaces for vehicles.

After parking the truck, I threw the scarf around my neck and shoved on the mittens. Reaching for my bag, I did a double check to make sure I had everything, and then I was out through the door.

As I stood at the start of the trail, I felt a rush of anxiousness rise from within me; yet I began walking.

After a few minutes, I noticed why this spot in particular seemed so popular for hiking. The scenery was quite magnificent. A river bank ran down next to the path, making the flowing of water give the sound around me a peaceful ambiance. The sun was bright in the sky, illuminating the world around me. I was no longer in Forks, but instead an alternate world; one where everything flowed smoothly, and there was no discomfort.

Everything felt perfect.

I found myself taking multiple pictures of the land around me, sighing with happiness knowing I could relieve this memory at any time. I walked on the trail for about an hour; the forest around me getting denser with each step, and the map had told me I had now entered into Quileute lands. I made sure to carefully study it so I wouldn't get lost. I could barely navigate a town I've been driving to everyday for the past year, let alone the foreign terrain around me.

Despite enjoying myself, I was hesitant to walk further. There were no footprints or anything. I felt that if there _was_ any sign of the beast, I would have spotted it by now. I debated on whether I wanted to waste more time here even though I was immensely enjoying myself.

Just as I was about to make a decision, a _whooshing_ sound met my ears, but the wind did not blow. The sound came from in the distance, from the left of where I stood, but I could not see what it was, as the tree line completely hindered my vision.

The whooshing was getting closer – at an alarming rate. I felt my heart quickly speed up its pace. My mind was telling me to watch for it – whatever it was – but my gut was telling me to find some sort of cover.

I listened to my gut; hurriedly crouching down by a bush to the left of me. I waited as I heard the unpleasant sound coming closer and closer.

I felt as if I was a prey.

One who was hiding from their predator – not too well either, as I was in the wide open, trying to cover my small frame.

The sound was close, and just as I was ready to see what it was, it flew through one side of the trees and into the other like a bullet; the only thing my eyes could pick up was the blazing orange color that almost seemed to linger behind it.

Then I heard the thumping. The rapid movement of something that was huge; slamming heavily into the ground. It was identical to what I heard _that day._ I waited, one side of me praying that it was the beast coming, but the other praying it was anything but that.

What I didn't expect was for it to jump out right above me. I felt the air immediately leave my lungs, only for me to quickly breath it all back in a loud gasp.

 _It_ heard me.

It rapidly spun its head around, and I started into the face of the monster. The big, black beast I saw _that day_ , and it stared straight back at me. Its large pointy ears were perked upward, and its dark eyes scanned me all over. Its mouth opened slightly, giving me a peak at the razor sharp teeth hiding behind.

It was a wolf.

It was a huge wolf.

I sat on the snowy ground, petrified as to what I was seeing in front of me. That wasn't a bad thing though, as staying still would offer me my best chance of survival.

The wolf made a loud exhaling sound before swiftly turning back around and dashing off into the forest.

I was alone again. But I still felt as if I were being watched. It took me a minute before I figured out how to work my limbs again, as I ripped myself from off the ground and staring running.

It was strange, as the fantasy that had built itself up around me had come to a shattering finish, as I no longer felt at peace. I no longer felt safe. My legs were rapid in motion as it felt as if I were running a mile a minute. The heavy pants I made filled my ears as I tried my best not to falter. I didn't know how long I ran, but each passing second I prayed I could find an exit from this hellish forest.

I felt the adrenaline that pumped through my body start to wear off as the truck became visible. As my hand reached the handle, I practically ripped it open, diving into the driver's seat, roaring the engine to life, and driving as far away from that area as fast as I could.

My hands trembled as I drove down the road to La Push. The shock finally began to wear off, and all the fear that had built up was released all at once. I found myself driving in the middle of the road, worried that my fidgety hands might make me drive off into a ditch by accident.

I reached the outskirts of the town, but I still didn't feel safe. I still felt as if _it_ was still watching me, its dark eyes following my every move. I parked in the driveway of my home, shutting off the engine and staring out the windshield. I wanted to move, but it seemed as I had forgotten how to again. Moments passed as I slowly took each step out of the truck with caution. Gently closing the door behind me, I made my way into the house.

"Hi Seth." A gruff voice spoke into my ear, making me jump from surprise as I let out a yelp. I whipped my head towards the owner, only to spot my father standing next to me, a questioning look on his face.

"H-hi." My voice came out shaky and nervous.

"Is there anything wrong?" He asked. I merely shook my head in response.

I tried to casually make my way up to my room to avoid any suspicion, and with each step I cursed at my jittery legs. Closing the door behind me and locking it, I felt myself fall onto my bed; my whole body shutting down.

I don't know how long I had lain on my bed like that, but soon I heard the faint voice of my mother calling me down for dinner. I striped myself of the heavy winter clothing that I forgot to take off and slowly made my way downstairs. Before walking into the kitchen, I caught sight of my father standing at the door, taking to someone.

Sam Uley stood in the door way, his face as serious as ever. His eyes quickly met mine, and his brows instantly furrowed. His gaze made me jolt in response, and I quickly dropped mine before making my way into the kitchen where my mother had just served a bowl of soup.

Dinner was unsettling. My father kept giving me glances every few minutes, but I wouldn't meet his gaze, and instead developed a heavy interest in the bowl sitting in front of me. After finishing it off, I announced that I was done as I made my way over to the sink to wash my dishes.

I had spent the remainder of the night in my room, the scene from today constantly replaying in my head. The way the wolf stared directly at me, its dark eyes digging deep into mine, but not attacking.

Why didn't it attack? Was I too easy of a pray? Was it chasing that… orange thing? What even was that? It moved so fast that, my eyes could barely see it. Should I tell someone about this? It seemed like the most reasonable thing to do, but at the same time, I questioned as to whether the wolf was a threat or not. It seemed that it didn't want to attack me, but it was fair to assume that maybe I just wasn't worth the trouble. Its entire structure was huge, so I doubt I'd be much of a meal.

My head began to ache with all these unanswerable questions.

There was one question that stuck out though.

Why did it seem that the wolf only stayed within the area? Was it trying to find something? Whatever it was, I planned on finding out what.

And for once, I knew exactly where to start.

I waited in my room until the night came, and there wasn't a soul awake in the house. My hand slowly twisted the knob of my door, and I winced as it made a whining sound. Luckily though, I heard the snores of my father in the other room, so there was no way anyone heard it. With careful footing, I snuck downstairs, and into the living room. I shuffled over towards the corner where a bookshelf sat.

My finger lightly grazed over the spines of each book as I search for what I was looking for. I sighed in relief as I found it. It was an old book. It had a very beaten down look to it but all the pages were still in great condition. _Quileute Legends_ it was called.

Returning to my bedroom, I pulled the chain on the lamp next to my bed, turning it on as I opened the book. Shifting on my bed, I made sure I got comfortable before I started.

I read until the early hours of the morning.

The book contained loads of information on the Quillayute people and the land we own. The book told simple fishermen and ship builders who claimed the lands long ago. As time passed, others wanted to take control of the area, so the fishermen got into boats and went out to sea.

Now this is where it gets strange.

They used magic to protect the lands from the hands of the intruders. Using some power called _Astral Projection,_ the men were able to spiritually leave their bodies and take control of the things around them. They used winds to scream at the invaders, and animals to do their bidding. They came out victorious, and the survivors fled, thinking the area was cursed.

Generations passed until finally, _Taha Aki_ was born; one of the great Spirit Chiefs. He was a man of peace, so one day, when one of the spirit warriors – Utlapa – said that the Quileute should try and invade the lands of the Makah and Hohs in hopes of building an empire, Taha Aki banned the man from the tribe.

One day, Taha Aki hid his body away in a sacred place, and left in his spirit form to scout the area in an attempt to make sure there was no danger, but Utlapa was quick to react, as he too left his body, killing it and then quickly taking over Aki's before the man could realize what had happened.

Utlapa returned to the village in Taha Aki's body, and everyone had believed that he was the Spirit Chief. He then demanded that no warriors of the tribe shall enter the spirit world, as he _had a vision of danger_ , but in reality, Utlapa was afraid of Taha Aki.

As time passed, the wandering Taha Aki eventually sent a wolf down to the village in hopes of killing Utlapa and freeing the tribe, but a young man had been killed instead, only making Aki's grief greater. As the wolf followed the man back to the forest, Aki got an idea. He asked the wolf if he could share its body, and the wolf agreed.

Inside the wolf, Taha Aki raced back to the village. People screamed for the warriors help as they spotted the foul beast, but Aki only retreated as the warriors chased him, yelping the song of his people, causing them to stop in realization as to what he was doing.

An old man named Yut caught on quickly, and disobeyed the orders of Utlapa, fleeing to the spirit world to which he realized the wolf had the spirit of the Great Chief.

Utlapa realized what was happening and killed Yut as he returned to his body before he could speak of what he saw.

Enraged by this, Aki in his wolf form shuttered, transforming into the body of a man – one who did not look like Taha Aki's body, but instead like his spirit. The warriors instantly recognized him.

Utlapa tried to run, but Aki had the strength of the wolf and killed him.

The tribe was finally freed, and was then returned to normal, and Aki abolished every rule Utlapa made except one.

 _No one should ever use Astral Projection again._

Many years passed, and Taha Aki led the tribe; for he did not age. He fathered many sons, who in time found that they too could shift into wolves when they reached a certain age. Some warriors though did not like to shift, and they eventually started to age.

The more I read, the more my eyes began to inch their way shut, until finally I fell asleep with the book in my hands.

I awoke to the sound of a door closing. Rubbing my eyes, I looked out my window to spot my father getting into his car and driving off. Groaning, I lazily got up from bed, quickly grabbing a pair of pants along with a shirt and headed on into the bathroom. The shower I took was long, as I thought of all of the information I had learned last night.

I ran wild with speculation, to which I came to the conclusion that the black wolf was quite possibly the spirit of a warrior from long ago. Of course, actually believing in these Legends seemed a bit childish on my part, but there wasn't any evidence against my theory.

Walking back into my room, I went to retrieve the book before getting breakfast, but it wasn't there.

I spent a good thirty minutes searching all around the room, high and low, only to come up short. I grumbled in frustration.

Did someone take it? I bet it was Leah. She's probably still mad about yesterday, and decided to be petty and steal it.

I marched down the stairs and into the kitchen, finding Leah sitting at the dining table while my mother prepared breakfast.

"Did you take it?" I demanded to know.

Leah looked up from where she sat. "What?" She asked, confused as to what I wanted to know.

"I had a book on my bed that I was reading, did you take it?" I asked again.

She was becoming annoyed by my accusation. "Why would I take your book?"

"Oh, I don't know. Maybe because you're always in a pissed off mood and you think everyone is out to get you." I felt myself becoming angry from how she was playing stupid.

She glared at me. "I don't take your damn book, you little brat." She hissed.

" _Hey!"_ My mother shouted. "It's not even breakfast yet and you two are already fighting. I will be having none of it." She then looked to me. "You young man, are going to go fetch me some eggs at the store right now, _and do not argue._ " She pointed a warning finger at me; I only crossing my arms in response.

"Fine." I stated, before strutting out of the room.

I ripped my coat off the anger and slammed the door shut behind me as I left the house. Cool air alerted my senses, and I stopped dead in my tracks for a moment, noticing how unreasonably enraged I felt inside, but I only left it be as I hopped into my truck and drove out without another thought.

It only took me about five minutes to reach the convenience store in town. I was happily welcomed as I entered through the doors. I politely waved to the cashier while putting on a fake smile. I sauntered over towards one of the coolers; opening it and searched for the carton of eggs, which I had then quickly spotted and snatched them off the top shelf. As I was about to be on my way, someone had stopped me.

"Why hello, Seth." Their voice rang.

I stared into the face of my second cousin, Emily Young – soon to be Uley. Her straight black hair flowed down her shoulders like I had always remembered. Her dark eyes peering into mine with a bright smile on her face.

"Hi, Emily." I smiled, pretending to be pleased to see her.

As much as Leah bugged me, I still remember the pain she went through due to both Sam and Emily, and I could never forgive either of them for it.

"How's your weekend been?" She casually asked, as if it hadn't been months since I've last seen her.

"Uhh, it's been alright. I went on a hike yesterday, but besides that not much else.

"Oh yeah, Sam told me." She smiled, to which her smile instantly disappeared, and instead was replaced with a look of shock.

I looked at her, confused. "What?"

"Uh, nothing, never mind. Well it was nice seeing you, Seth!" She blabbered before quickly escaping through the doors of the store.

"…Okay?" I quietly said to myself; walking up to the checkout counter.

After purchasing the carton, I hopped back into the truck, and drove off. As I was on my way back, I sat there, wondering as to what I had said to make Emily run off like that. Thinking back to my conversation, out of the minimal times I spoke, nothing seemed out of the ordinary.

' _Oh yeah, Sam told me.'_

I felt as if my mind shut off for a second.

Sam told her? Told her what, that I went hiking? How would Sam even know about that? I didn't tell anyone about where I was going, nor was there anyone else on the path that day. There weren't even any cars close to that area.

Hell, I'm positive the only thing that saw me yesterday was-

I sharply breathed in. My grip tightened on the wheel as I felt my eyes grow wide.

"N-no… That's just not true." I whispered to myself.

" _It's impossible."_


	4. The Classics

_**The Classics**_

* * *

I groaned, flicking my bag into the truck; it hitting the passenger side floor with a thud. It had been a long day. Tuesdays were never good, but this one in particular was absolutely intolerable.

I was suppose to have plans with my father to go hunting after school, but at the last minute this morning he called it off. Apparently he had to help Chief Swan out with a problem he was having, but I had caught him sneaking out of the house with his rifle, so it was pretty obvious that his excuse was a lie, and he actually wanted to go alone. This wouldn't bother me as much as it did if it weren't for the fact that I had nothing else to do, and when I had nothing to do I couldn't distract myself from thinking about Sam Uley.

My mind felt as if it were collapsing in on itself, as the events over the weekend kept on repeating in my head, making it ache beyond belief. After what had happened, I had shut myself in my room for the entirety of Monday, telling my mother that I was sick. It wasn't a lie. I did feel sick. I was both physically exhausted from the hike and mentally from everything that happened afterwards.

I still didn't know what to think of the whole situation. About the legends of the tribe and the wolf – which I still questioned whether if I was being crazy to believe in the possibility that it could be Sam.

I didn't want to believe it. _It was probably crazy of me to believe it,_ but I couldn't shake the feeling that it was all true.

I wanted to find out more on the tribe, but I wasn't able to find the Quileute Legends book that had seemed to disappear on me. I even bugged Leah about it some more but she had swore to me that she never took it. I had asked my father if he had any other books on the tribe, and while he said yes, apparently they were all written in Quillayute, so that was a lost cause.

As I reached home, I hopped out of the truck and walked towards the door. Cracking it open, I paused, hearing the sound of my mother's laugh; but not only hers, but the laugh of a man as well. A laugh I knew all too well. I instantly felt queasy, and my mind was telling me to get away from the area as quickly as possible, but I proceeded on, gently clicking the door shut behind me.

"You haven't changed a bit." Her voice spoke, only to laugh again.

I took each step carefully, as to not make any sound. I peeked my head through the doorway of the kitchen, spotting my mother leaning on the counter.

Across from her sat Paul.

He was looking at me, his face unreadable. I only stared back; my mouth slightly parted and my eyes wide.

"Oh," My mother noticed my arrival. "I didn't hear you come in, Seth."

I felt myself began to shake as I continued to looked into the eyes of the boy who abandoned me; his glossed over and digging deep into mine, which seemed to be filled with emotion. I felt myself grow pale as my unsteady hand tried its best to keep grip on the door frame.

"What are you doing here?" I questioned.

"He just came over to generously drop off some of the jam his father made." My mother said, to which she gave a bright smile at the boy.

"I guess I'll take my leave." Paul spoke, his eyes never leaving mine.

"Leaving so soon?" She asked.

"Got some things to do." To which he then gave her a charming smile. My mother then bid him farewell.

My eyes never left the seat where he had sat. He brushed up against me, which I felt the intense heat that seemed to radiate off of him. But despite this, my body felt ice cold.

And with the sound of a door closing, he was gone.

I continued to stare at the now empty seat.

"Is there something wrong, Seth?" My mother asked. My eyes shot over to her as I felt a wave of anger and frustration overtake me.

"You know exactly what's wrong!" I barked back; making her jump from the sudden outburst.

"Now Seth, don't be like that."

"Why shouldn't I? You know what he did, and you know how much he hurt me." I was shaking; anger unleashing from within me in waves upon waves. The anger mixed with sorrow and pain as all the memories shot back to me like a bullet, crushing my skull from the inside. My hands were pressed to the sides of my head as I felt myself push back in response.

"Seth, he's a good person."

My eyes harshly shot up towards her. I couldn't believe what I was hearing.

"Good person…?" I was quiet. _"Good person_?" I repeated; practically spitting acid at her feet. "What, he ended our friendship then stomped on it in front of my face because he's _so great_. Are you kidding me?"

My mother stood defensive, as if I was a wild animal about to attack. "Seth, you don't understand now, but maybe one day you will."

" _One day."_ I hissed. "One day is already too late."

To add to the already horrible condition I was in, my heart felt it had been crushed yet again as I relived the pain I felt that day on the beach. What does 'One day' even mean? What does she know?

I furiously dragged myself up the stairs, taking quick steps towards my room, only to slow down as I felt myself growing less angry and more saddened. My gaze never left the floor as each memory of that day began crashing back to me. By the time my hand reached the knob of the door, the tears were already running down my face as my throat threatened to let out a sob. I sniffled, not letting myself break before I was in a secluded area. Pushing the door open and closing it behind me, I locked it.

As my eyes trailed upwards from the floor, the lump in my throat I had been holding in broke free, but instead of sobbing, I let out a gasp.

Paul stood tall, with his sharply structured face blank. He was planted directly in the middle of the room; broad chest pushed high. His lips were tightly pressed together as his eyes invaded mine.

He didn't speak.

I gasped for air as realizing I had been holding my breath. "Are you trying to give me a heart attack?"

He only continued to stare. Moments passed as we stood in intense silence, the whole world feeling as it had stopped.

"H-how'd you get in here?" I questioned, to which he casually pointed to the open window next to my bed. I didn't know what else to say. Why was he here? And what did he want? "If you're here to stomp on my feelings some more, feel free to leave." I glared at him.

I always spoke what I was really feeling with Paul. It was one of the few things that came naturally. Our friendship has – had always been like that.

Within seconds, the hardened exterior the boy had built around him seemed to slowly break open; his face being the first victim. The look of grief he wore was extreme. His fists clenched, shaking uncontrollably as his entire body seemed to let out a shiver. His mouth was open, teeth clenched as his eyes were pressed together in desperation. It wasn't enough, as a lone tear escaped from the seam of his eye, only to be followed by another, until finally he let out a sharp breath through the locked spaces of teeth.

 _He was crying?_

He started to approach. Each step slow and steady as he made his way towards me. I wanted to back up defensively, but my body was already in front of the door. After a few more steps, he stopped, practically towering over me with an unreadable expression. I was about to question what he was doing, but my train of thought was cut off as he wrapped his arms around me, pulling me close to his chest, securing me in an embrace. He rested his head on top of mine. The heat off his body engulfed me as I stood there, completely stunned as to what was going on.

A few moments passed as I unconsciously found myself wrapping my arms back around him despite my mind telling me to push him away and start running towards the hills.

This week could not get any stranger.

I heard Paul sigh, only to whisper words into my hair.

"I missed you so much." His voice was strained. "I'm sorry." He continued. "I'm so sorry for everything I put you though, but I'm done trying to keep away from you. I can't bare it any longer." He was now shaking. "I'm so sorry, Seth. I hope you're able to forgive a sickening monster like me."

I pushed back on his chest to look up at the boy. "Paul… what's going on?" I was desperate to know. "Why are you apologizing to me all of a sudden? What happened to not wanting to be friends? I just can't understand anything, y-you're just not making any sense."

"I can't tell you right yet." His voice was barely audible. I felt myself instantly pushing away from him, only for him to pull me back in. "No... Please… I promise you'll know soon, I just can't tell you right yet. Can you accept that?"

I silently laughed into him. "Can I accept that?" I mocked the words. "First you say you don't want to be friends, and now we're in my room while you practically crush me with your arms, asking me to forgive you for everything that's happened. What's with this back and forth battle you have going on? I swear, I'm getting whiplash from just being near you." He eased his grip around me. "I just don't understand it." But I guess I didn't really understand anything that's happened to me in the past few days.

I fell silent, but I knew that Paul was still waiting for me to answer his question. _Could I forgive him?_ I didn't want to. I wanted to force myself not to. But for some reason as I stood there hugging my former best friend, I couldn't say no. As if the word had completely dropped out of my vocabulary, it felt as if though some sort of force was refusing to let me deny what he so desperately wanted, and instead was forcing me to comply.

"Paul, I don't know if I can trust you after this." I said truthfully. I felt his whole body sag onto me in response. "But," I continued. "If you _promise_ to _never_ do this to me again, I guess I could learn to."

"I promise." He whispered eagerly, tightening his grip around me again.

I sighed; letting all of the confusion wash away, only to be replaced by acceptance.

"Then I forgive you."

I could feel a smile forming from his mouth which had been still buried in my hair. We stayed like that for a few moments, feeling at peace with one another.

Then Paul's stomach growled.

I let out a big laugh, to which he let me lose from his grip as he wrapped his arm around his waist, embarrassed.

"Do you uhh… want to go get something to eat?" I asked him, unsure if it was too soon to start acting friendly towards him.

He nodded eagerly.

"I'll meet you down in the truck." He spoke, before walking towards the window. As it registered in my mind as to what he was about to do, I quickly hissed at him.

"What are you doing?"

But it was already too late, as I saw his figure jump from the window.

Stricken with panic, I sprinted over, looking down at the ground outside, fully expecting to see Paul sprawled out with some kind of injury, but he stood straight, looking back up, giving me his famous cocky grin. I rolled my eyes at him, shaking off the minor heart attack I just experienced before closing the window and sprinting down stairs.

"I'm heading out!" I announced to my mother.

"And where exactly is _out?_ " She questioned.

"Out." I happily responded, bolting out the door.

I spotted Paul. He was sitting in the driver's side of my truck, patiently waiting for me. I walked around towards the passenger side before opening the door and hopping in.

"Keys, please." He said, sticking out his open hand.

I raised an eyebrow at him. "And why exactly do you get to drive?" I questioned, passing over the item he desired.

"My driving on my worst day is a _thousand_ times better than you on your best." He stated; his head held high. I pretended to be offended at the comment. He cheerfully laughed at my overdramatic reaction.

We drove up the road to Forks. Neither of us spoke, but it was a relaxed silence. A peaceful one that was familiar.

My mind still couldn't comprehend that I was sitting in my truck with Paul, let alone the fact that we were… I would want to say best friends again, but I didn't want to let my guard down so quickly. I felt weary, but I didn't dwell on it though, as I'm sure that Paul thought we _were_ best friends again.

Questions floated around in my head. I wanted to ask him about _it_ , but I knew that he wouldn't tell me, as he already said beforehand. It bothered me though. Paul was in this 'pack' that seemed to be led by Sam Uley. I wonder if Paul knew about the black wolf – that is if my assumption about Sam was correct. I wanted to speak about it badly, but I was afraid it would upset the ambiance we had going.

Instead, I settled for trivial questions.

"You broke up with Rachel." I more so stated than asked. I could see the grim look that appeared on his face, only to vanish seconds later.

"Yeah."

"Why?"

"I found someone else."

I whipped my head back towards the boy, surprised as to what he had said. His lip had curled up into a half grin.

I waited a few moments before asking; "Seriously?"

"Yeah." He repeated, looking back over at me; his crooked smile now growing. I only frowned at this.

"…I thought you loved her." my voice was faint, confused as to how he could do a one-eighty like that.

Though of course, he did the same thing to our friendship… twice.

"I did." His voice then became full of emotion. "But when I saw this person, I knew it was meant to be."

"Love at first sight, huh?" I questioned.

"You could say something like that."

The way he spoke about them, it seemed that they haven't even spoken yet. I knew Paul was always the type of person to jump the gun when he got a good feeling about something, but was this really worth the risk?

Moments passed, and I realised there was one question I hadn't asked yet.

"So," I looked over to him, wiggling my eyebrows up and down, "Who is she?"

He rolled his eyes. "You don't know them." He said, laughing and giving a toothy grin, his pearly whites vividly contrasting against his russet skin in a beautiful way.

I wasn't afraid to admit that Paul was quite striking in the looks department, and he was quite aware of this himself. Ever since we were growing up, he was always popular with the girls at school – and sometimes even with guys. Of course he wasn't attracted to men, so he let them down easy, but the amount of girlfriends he had would probably be some kind of record somewhere.

Things slowed down in high school after he found Rachel. Something about her caught Paul's attention, and he was hooked ever since. That is until now, and I still questioned as to why it had ended. I doubt the cause was as simple as _'love at first sight'._ But I knew Paul, and once he was set on something, he planned to get it, so whoever this girl is, she must be pretty special.

As we entered the outskirts of Forks, I expected us to head into town, but Paul had then turned onto a side road. I shot a look towards him.

"And where exactly are you taking me?"

"I'm in the mood for a mighty burger at Micky-D's. You mind if we go to Port Angeles?" He gave me a hopeful look.

"Sure, although I'm not sure how this old hunk of junk will take driving that far."

Paul nocked the roof with his knuckles. "Have more faith in her, Sethy." I chuckled, shaking my head.

I soon found my mind wandering back to Rachel. I did feel bad about what happened with her and Paul, and even slightly irritated at Paul for what he did, but I guess when you find yourself second-doubting who your with, it probably wasn't meant to be in the first place. That's what I thought anyway.

I believed in soulmates – or at least some form of it anyways. I truly thought that each person had someone that was their other half. But the thing is, I also believed that it's quite possible to never get to meet them in your lifetime.

This is exactly what I thought was going to happen to me.

I rarely dated, but when I did, I enjoy myself with the aspects of being in a relationship, but out of the few girls I did date, something inside of me always told me that they weren't the one, and I probably was never going to find them.

That is unless I got out of La Push.

For awhile now, I've been thinking of saving up a college fund in hopes of someday leaving the reservation, and possibly never looking back.

To other people – especially the older generation, the reservation was their home, and they could never leave it, but I saw it more as a prison. Everywhere you look there was poverty. I was fortunate enough to have parents who both had a nice and steady income, but others weren't so lucky.

Of course it was only an idea, and so far I haven't really acted on it. I knew I would have to sacrifice a few things if I left. Not seeing my family as much would be one of them, but of course I would have to move out one day, so it was bound to happen eventually.

Not seeing Paul everyday would definitely be strange, and in the last month I've learned that such a thing would definitely have a major toll on me, and the more I thought about leaving not just La Push, but Paul as well, hit something deep inside me that almost made me feel sick at the thought.

I hadn't the clue of what Paul planned to do after school – that is if he graduates. He hasn't been to a single class in a month, so his average grades were undoubtfully pretty bad at the moment. What's worse is that if things didn't work out with this girl he likes, what would Paul do?

"Hey um…" I spoke up, catching his attention. "What do you plan to do after school?"

Paul gaze remained on the road as his face scrunched up. It looked as if the question had hit some sort of nerve. "I don't know." He said honestly, only to quickly pick himself up as he looked to me, giving a warm smile. "Probably follow you wherever you're headed."

I stared at him in surprise. "Oh yeah?" I tested. "What if I plan to take flight to Antarctica. Would you be able to handle the cold?"

"Please." He brushed me off. His hand then shot out for mine, swiftly grabbing it, giving me a challenged look. "I'll be fine."

I instantly felt the warmth he gave off, and once again felt stunned as to how intense it was. My brow furrowed as I questioned how it was still possible after all this time for him to be radiating this heat.

"Hey, you're just as warm as you were when you got sick last month… how's that possible?"

He seemed to shrug the question off.

"It's a _me_ thing." He said casually, before giving yet another smile.

It wasn't really the answer I was looking for, but I dropped it.

Minutes seemed to pass by until I realised Paul was still holding onto my hand, his fingers tightly laced into mine. He didn't notice, as his face indicated that he was in some sort of trance.

"Paul?" I gave him a look.

He seemed to stare at me for a moment, only to quickly remember what he was doing and harshly snatched his hand away.

It didn't seem like a big deal, but I felt a lingering sense of awkwardness in the atmosphere.

The ride to Port Angeles seemed surprisingly short, as Paul kept up the conversation, asking me all these questions on what I had been doing the past month.

"So Angela Weber… she's the tall girl who is friends with the leach lo-" He paused. "Friends with Bella Swan, correct?"

My eyes narrowed at him. "Uh, I don't exactly know who Bella Swan is, but yeah she is tall."

"And Ben Cheney is the boy I um…" He trailed off, unable to finish the sentence from embarrassment.

"Yeah, that guy." I chuckled, only to then sigh. "I'm glad I'm friends with them, and not just because they're my only friends. They helped me out when I was kind of a loner during school. They're very nice people." I felt myself smile purely from memories of the positivity both Angela and Ben seemed to always give out.

"You wouldn't have had to be alone if I hadn't have been such a monster…" His face made him look like he was in physical pain.

"No Paul, It's okay now." I reassured him. "We're back together and that's what matters."

The boy seemed to have more to say, but never spoke afterwards.

We had soon reached Port Angeles. The city was as big as I remembered, and I found myself admiring how urban it all was – the complete opposite of the reservation.

We drove down streets up on streets as we searched for the fast food chain that seemed to be hiding away from us.

"You spot it yet?" Paul asked.

"Nada." I replied, eyeing each individual building with intense focus.

One building in particular caught my eye. It was off to the side – almost hidden away from the world. The Thunderbird & Whale Bookstore.

I quickly remembered that the book I desired had made a sudden disappearance. I was definitely going to stop by there, and if I was lucky, maybe they might have the book in stock.

"Oh!" I heard Paul exclaim, pointing to something in the distance.

It wasn't hard to see what he had spotted, as there was a sign with a gigantic 'M'.

"Juicy burger, here I come." Paul licked his lips in anticipation. I only laughed at his eagerness.

I hadn't expected there to be so many people there. The parking lot was practically three-fourth's full, which in itself was strange considering it was closing in on six pm. We both stepped out of the truck, making our way to the front doors. As we stepped in, we had quickly noticed that the place was packed on the inside too.

"Oh, man. We drove all the way down here just to have to wait in line for half an hour." Paul grumbled.

"Don't worry, you'll get your 'juicy burger'." I smiled.

"A juicy burger…" He trailed off. "One with bacon and cheese… lots and lots of cheese." He was practically drooling as we stepped in line.

"Easy there, Urkel. You'll get all the cheese you want soon, just be patient."

He rolled his eyes, chuckling at the comment.

After a moment, my mind began to wander back to the bookstore I had spotted earlier. By the time we're done eating, it'll be getting close to seven, so there probably wont be time to stop by.

An idea popped into my head, and I turned to Paul.

"Hey, there's a book store just a few blocks from here, and I've been meaning to get some new books. Do you mind?" I asked.

"Oh… uh sure, we can come back when the place isn't as packed." He said.

"No, I wouldn't want to make you wait longer. I can go by myself, really. I'll be back in fifteen minutes tops. Just order me whatever you're having."

He seemed hesitant. "…Okay. Just be quick okay."

"Promise." I gave him a thumbs up along with a wink, to which I swiftly turned on my heels and started walking out.

"And be careful of strangers!" He shouted out like a worried mother.

The streets weren't too crowded as I made my way to my destination. A chilly breeze blew straight past me, an I felt myself shiver in response; zipping up my coat immediately.

A few blocks soon turned into a lot, until finally I spotted the place I was searching for.

The building had resembled a shack-like appearance, giving it a more welcoming and less intimidating vibe compared to the others around it. I walked up the green wooden steps, each one slightly squeaking. As my hand reached for the door, I opened it; hearing a bell chime above me as I entered.

The first thing I spotted was a man behind the counter. He resembled myself, with his russet skin and black hair, but was broader built and a lot more masculine.

"Good evening." He politely nodded his head, to which I mimicked the greeting.

I walked through rows and rows of book shelves, only to find that I soon had made a full lap, to which I quickly re-searched everything, only to come up short.

Sighing, I made my way back to the front counter.

"Excuse me," I asked the man. He looked up from the computer screen next to him.

"Yes?"

"Do you perhaps have a book called Quileute Legends in stock?"

The man's face seemed to scrunch up, trying to think of what to say. "Hold on just a second." He said, before turning back to the computer to type in something. Once he found what he had been searching for, he turned back to me with an apologetic face. "Sorry, it seems that the last one we had in stock was sold about a year ago."

"Ahh…" I felt myself slouch a bit in disappointment.

"Is there anything else I can help with?"

"Oh, no thank you, I'm fine." I assured him.

Since I was already here, I might as well get some books anyways, even if they weren't what I was looking for.

In the end I had picked out Frankenstein and Dracula. I always had a thing for books on monsters – especially the classics – as they always seemed to peek my interests.

As the man checked them out, he put them in a bag and passed it over to me. I murmured a thank you and goodbye before exiting back out the doors, but not before checking the clock on the wall, seeing that thirty minutes had already passed.

"Shit." I said to myself, as I began to speed walk down the alleyways.

Paul was probably worried sick.

I entered back out onto the sidewalk, which had seemed to be less populated than before, as there were only the scattered few walking.

As I passed by an open door, I glanced in to see that it was a pub – one that was heavily packed. People were dancing in an erotic manner, grinding up on each other to the sound of up beat music.

"Something wrong, kid?" A scratchy voice said, and I jumped in surprise, seeing a man leaning by the doorway with two others, giving me strange looks. They were all wearing leather jackets along with jeans that seemed to be a tad snug. They all were intimidating, but the man in the doorframe was most frightening, as his head was shaved with tattoos all up his neck.

Probably some biker gang.

"N-no." I stuttered out. "No problem."

I turned away and began walking again, only to soon hear heavy clicks of boots following close behind. I felt myself unconsciously start to walk faster, only to hear murmurs, to which the clicking noise sped up. My eyes were glued to the ground as I clutched the plastic bag containing my books to my chest.

I then hit something hard.

I staggered back, looking up to see a face – one in which I hadn't yet seen. They wore the same biker gear as the others did.

"Whoa, watch where you're going, man." He spoke, his face full of irritation.

"S-sorry…" My voice came out shaky.

"Ah, Wilson, I've see you've met our little buddy." Another voice said.

I whipped my head around, seeing the three men from the bar all standing there, each with a look that made my stomach drop.

"The little punk was planning on sneaking into a bar." The man with the tattoos spoke, chuckling.

"Ah, some under-age drinking, I see…" The man named Wilson gave me a smirk.

He then rapidly started to approach. I felt myself quickly backing up defensively, only to knock into the tattooed man. In an instant, he took me from behind, roughly grabbing my arms and shoving me into the ground.

I felt myself hit the side of a wall with a thud, only to quickly look up at the men. They all towered over me, a different yet equally vile expression written on each of their faces.

I was in danger, and I hadn't the clue what to do. That in itself made me frightened beyond belief.

Wilson was about to speak up, only to be cut off by what almost sounded like a bang.

" _HEY!"_ A voice snarled. I looked to my left, my eyes rapidly focusing in on the figure standing there.

Paul was staring at the men, a look of repugnance etched deeply into him. His eyes were graphically wide, as his body was violently shaking. That time in the cafeteria did not even compare to the visual playing out in front of me.

He seemed like he was ready to kill.

He made his move, and before my eyes could react as to what was happening, Paul was in front of Wilson, his fist colliding with the man's face, making a cracking noise. Wilson fell to the ground, knocked out.

One of the other guys stepped up, blade in hand and ready to attack. He flung himself at Paul, and I felt myself shout out in fear.

" _Paul!"_ I cried.

But paul simply wrapped his hand around the blade, only to flick his wrist down, snapping it off without trouble. He flung the metal away, to which he turned his attention back to the man, who in rapid motion, spun on his heels and bolted – the other man quickly following behind, leaving the tattooed man standing there, defenseless. His mouth was hung open, shaking in fear from the beast before him.

Paul's hands shot out, clenching around the man's throat. He slowly lifted the man off the ground; the man quickly reacting, grasping his hands onto Paul's wrists. Moments seemed to pass by as I laid on the ground, horrified as to what I was witnessing

Choking sounds met my ears as I saw the man tightly clenching his hands, trying his hardest to breath, only to fail as Paul's grip got tighter and tighter.

 _I need to calm him._

"P-paul!" I yelled, but he didn't seem to hear me; his eyes pitch-black and completely focused into the man's, watching as the life drained from him. "Paul, you're killing him!" I yelled again, but my voice wouldn't reach him.

I had to do something – anything to stop him from murdering the guy.

I felt myself jump up from the concrete ground, stumbling over, ducking under one of Paul's arms and shooting my head up through the gap to face the boy. My hands found my way to each side of his face as I stared straight into his eyes.

"Paul, p-please stop." I whimpered, tears now streaming down my face in a steady flow. His glare focused on me, and his face went neutral. "Please…" I begged. "Stop it."

There were seconds of dead silence, until I heard a thud, and my head whipped around to see the tattooed man on the ground, his hands around his neck, coughing and gasping for air. Looking back, I was met with a face of horror. I gazed into Paul's scared eyes.

His hands slowly drifted downwards, his hands taking up mine.

"Paul?" I asked, but he simply closed his eyes, his grip on my hands tightening and he slowly moved his head inward, leaning his forehead against mine.

"I'm sorry." He whispered. "I only wanted to protect you."

I felt myself slowly but surely start to calm as we stood there, faces inches apart. I waited for his eyes to open but the never did.

We both remained silent, until Paul leaned back away, letting go of one of my hands and began walking forward, hauling me in tow.

"W-wait, my books!" I remembered, looking back to the bag on the sidewalk. Paul turned around and we staggered back; he then snatching it up.

We continued back on track; Paul staring straight ahead as we walked, neither of us speaking.

The new moon refused to illuminate light onto the shadowed paths around us, but Paul's hand was tightly laced into mine, never letting go, so I didn't feel one bit scared.


	5. Photo-hog

_**Photo-hog**_

* * *

The clanging of rain hitting the hood filled the truck as we drove down the one-oh-one.

My arms were folded over my chest as I leaned back in the passenger seat, staring out into the darkness, trying my best not to think of anything. He had one hand on the wheel, the other holding a burger that he quietly chewed on, watching as he drove us down the shadowy highway. My eyes were heavy despite my best efforts to stay awake, the truck occasionally filling with light as we passed by the scarce streetlight, making them shoot back open.

We were on mute. One that had turned on the second we left the restaurant. I could tell he wanted to say something, but if he did, he would be acknowledging what had happened just an hour before, and both he and I didn't want this. So we settled for silence. One that seemed to be filling up the void in the truck, slowly but surely drowning us from the inside out.

There was a contradiction. An inconsistency playing in my mind, eating away at me as I tried to figure out what exactly I was feeling, and what feelings were strongest.

I felt safe with Paul.

A sentence I could repeat over and over in my head and know it was true, but as the memories of the night kept replaying, the terror in my mind wouldn't disperse, and what was worse is that I couldn't tell if I was scared of the bikers or scared of _him_. A contradiction that I wasn't able to figure out even when I looked across to watch his mellowed out face. Something about him kept luring me in. Some untapped feeling, and yet the cautiousness in me kept telling me to be scared—be petrified as to what I've seen. An emotion I had never felt with Paul. But of course, Paul was no Medusa. I've known him my whole life, and I know in the drop of a hat he would come to my rescue even if I didn't deserve one. That's how selfless he was. And yet I sat there, questioning if I was scared.

A shiver went down my spine as I realized how cool it was in the truck. I didn't bother to turn up the heat, as I knew that even with how little was coming out, it was on full blast. Old trucks may drive good, but they definitely lacked in the heating department.

"Over a hundred degrees over here." Paul spoke in a whisper.

I hesitated, remembering that Paul himself was a living radiator. I gave it some thought before quickly unbuckling my seat belt and shifting over to the middle seat. Clicking back in, I then eagerly pressed my body into the side of his, feeling the heat overtake in a blanket of warmth.

I sighed as I felt Paul leaned his head onto mine while wrapping an arm around me.

The position we were both in probably looked strange to anyone but us, as it probably looked somewhat too close for friends. It was understandable, but I had always been able to do things like this with Paul. It's just how _our_ friendship worked.

My eyelids began to ignore the occasional glare of the passing lights, as they soon came to a final shut.

 _I saw a forest. One that was tightly packed with trees and shrubs everywhere you looked. There was one opening—almost unnoticeable, but became visible as he walked into view. His dark hair and beautiful russet skin was shining. The blazing orange sun washed across the sky, bathing the earth in a fiery red hue. His eyes mimicked, turning deep red and threatening. He was holding something. Something dark and large, with fur like an animal, but only a piece, as the red liquid started dripping down from the bottom. His hand slowly rotated to reveal his prize._

 _It was wolf head—the wolf's head._

 _I felt myself gasp._

" _I only wanted to protect you." His voice; so flat and emotionless._

 _The glow of red started to fade, and I looked up to see the orange sun hide itself behind the blackened moon. An eclipse was coming…. I looked back down to see him, his face no longer neutral, as he was now fearful, his mouth forming words._

" _RUN!" His voice cried._

 _A snarl met my ears, and I knew what was about to happen. I remained stationary, knowing full well there was no escape. He ran towards me, screeching and begging me to move, but I couldn't. I was unable to defend myself from the attacker. I looked over my shoulder to see it, hiding in the woods. It sprung, and as I was about to brace myself for impact, he jumped in front of me, and my heart dropped._

My arms acted like a spring as I shot up, gasping for air. Rapidly looking to either side of me, I took in my surroundings, quickly realising I was in my room alone. My stomach grumbled, and I slap a hand onto my mouth, realising what was about to happen. Hopping onto my feet, I half-staggered, half-sprinted out of the room, my feet slamming into the ground with each step. I shoved the door to the bathroom open as I jumped to the toilet, skidding on my knees as I was half way across. The bile practically poured out of me. Moments passed until I was able to finally catch my breath before I let out another spew of toxins as my body shuttered from the abruptness. My head began hammering with pain as I tried my best to keep a steady grip on the toilet as I released the contents of the meal from hours ago, my shaking arms threatening to collapse at any second.

After coughing up a bit more, the nausea seemed to calm, and I was left there lying in front of the toilet seat, feeling as though I was unable to move.

I noticed a pair of feet in the doorway as I looked up to see my mother, her face full of worry.

"Are you okay, dear?"

I only grumbled out a response, leaning back onto the bathtub as I felt my eyes become heavy again.

"Oh no, you aren't sleeping here mister." Walking over, she put an arm under me while attempting to lift me up. I complied as I put an arm over her shoulders as she led me back to my room. Dropping me onto the bed, she hauled the blankets over me before quickly walking out of the room, only to return with a bucket in hand.

"Just in case."

Placing it next to my bed, she then planted a kiss on my forehead and left the room; I drifting from consciousness seconds later.

 _I had woken up many times during the night to gag into the bucket, and before long the morning had already dawned. Waking up to the glaring sun made my head spin, as I was still a bit nauseous. My mother let me have the day off just in case, and had called the school to excuse my absence, to which I was entirely grateful, as throwing up in the middle of a classroom would probably be one of the most embarrassing things to happen to me in my life._

 _It was ten am, and I was sitting on the couch, watching CNN as I chowed down on a hefty breakfast that my mother made me. My hand reached over to haul out a piece of tissue from the box next to me as I wiped my nose for the hundredth time that morning._

 _I had the flu, no doubt about that. Hadn't the clue as to how I contracted it though. The only thing I could have guessed was that some sick worker had sneezed in my food last night and served it to me anyways. While it did suck, I wouldn't complain about having an entire day of relax and do absolutely nothing._

" _Seth!" My mother called as she walked into the room. I shifted my gaze to her, watching as she threw a jacket around herself. "I have to go in to work. The shop just called and someone is out, so I need to cover their shift, so I need to take your truck."_

" _Oh, yeah that's fine." I said, picking up a strip of bacon._

" _Now if you need to call me at all, the number to the shop is on the fridge and-"_

" _Mom, I'll be fine." I assured._

 _My mother wasn't exactly the most carefree person, and while it did have it's… disadvantages, it did show how much she really cared._

"… _.Okay." She said, opening up the front door only to look back at me. "I called someone to come over and watch you just in case."_

 _I practically choked._

" _W-what?"_

" _I hope you feel better sweetie, I love you!" She quickly shouted before running out the door. I sat there, wide-eyed and horrified as I wondered who she could have called to see me in the unfit state I was in._

 _My thoughts were soon answered as minutes later the door clicked open, to which a face peaked their head in._

" _Seeeth."_

 _My only response was to let out the loudest groan my mucus-filled throat could handle._

 _Yes, Sue Clearwater was an unbelievable worrywart, but she had absolutely nothing on Paul Lahote. For years, anytime I was sick, Paul practically wouldn't leave my side no matter what. It had always bugged me to no end, but a little part of me did enjoy the attention._

 _The boy, quickly closed the door behind him before taking off his shoes and sprinting over to the couch like a child, jumping on it and embracing me into a one armed hug._

" _Caught the flu, huh?" He gave me his cocky grin, and I only grumbled at him with a soured face. "Aw, don't be like that." He said, grabbing some of my blankets to put over him. Picking up the remote on the coffee table, he looked down at me. "You mind?" He whispered, his warm breath hitting my face._

" _Oh be my guess. In fact, since you've already stolen my blankets and my TV, why don't you also steal some of my food." It would've taken the densest person not to pick up on the sarcasm in my voice._

" _Don't mind if I do!"_

 _He snatched the plate from my hands, picking up every strip of bacon and dropping it into his mouth, swallowing it all without so much as a chew. He looked back down to me, and while I couldn't tell if my face was annoyed or shocked, Paul seemed to find it hilarious._

" _That was delicious! I'm gonna make myself some more, you want?"_

" _Considering you just ate half of mine in less than a second; yes, yes I would."_

 _His vivid smile never left his face as he hopped up from the couch and sauntered into the kitchen. I was alone again, and my sluggishness protested me from following Paul into the kitchen, so I settled for leaning my head back onto the couch and resting my eyes as I listened to the sounds of sports casters talking about some amazing football game on the TV. Such peace didn't last long though, as Paul was soon calling out to me for assistance. With all my strength, I pushed myself up from the comfy resting spot, feeling as the cool air touch my boiling skin. Gabbing the blanket, I flung it around me like a cloak and shuffled my way across the room._

 _Paul caught sight of my red-nosed and grouchy self, and he just gave an apologetic smile._

" _I dunno how to cook eggs." He said with a shrug._

 _I looked over to the plate next to the stove, seeing stacks and stacks of bacon strips, each one completely burnt to a crisp._

" _You don't know how to cook bacon either."_

 _He gave me a mock-offended look._

" _Hey, I just so happen to love 'em like this." He picked up a strip, putting it between his teeth and cracking down on it, making the loudest possible crunch._

 _I rolled my eyes before picking up a spatula and making my way over to him. I stood a little to close to the stove as I began flipping the eggs, feeling as the soothing heat hit me. Soon, I found big arms wrap around me and the blanket, while Paul leaned his chin onto my shoulder to watch me cook. His eyes were closed as he hummed a melody that sounded like a folk song we grew up listening to, rocking us back and forth on our feet._

 _I couldn't explain it, but at that moment, I felt my heart give the ever so slight flutter. I relaxed into his arms as my droopy gaze stayed on the pan. I looked to the side, seeing Paul's mellowed out face inches from mine. He looks so peaceful. He looked like the person I knew all my life, not the one who had erratic fits of outrage, and not like the one who hurt me so bad that I hadn't been the same since._

 _He just looked like Paul. The guy who cracked jokes in the most intense situations to calm everyone down. The guy who once carried me in his arms for six miles down a hiking trail after I had sprained my ankle and he refused to let me walk. The person I loved most in this world._

 _His eyes fluttered open. His face became intense as he caught glimpse of me staring. Something so unexplainable yet undeniable was writing on his face. Pain? Fondness? Affection? I couldn't tell. He maneuvered himself so he was completely facing me while still holding me in an embrace. His warm breath hit my face and I almost felt dizzy. My whole body was hot._

 _He leaned in. Closer and closer, until finally there was no longer a gap, and his soft lips were firmly pressed against mine._

 _Seconds. Minutes. Hours? I couldn't tell how much time passed, my mind only registering the fact that Paul was kissing me. He's kissing me… Why? And I was kissing back… Why is this happening? I couldn't comprehend it, and what made my already confused self even more bewildered was that I liked it. I liked it so much that I kept kissing him, again and again until we were in a heated make out session, with his strong arms wrapped tightly around my back, keeping me in place as my hands were tangled in his hair._

 _Then all to quickly, I realized what was going on and I went ridged._

My eyes opened, and I was no longer in the kitchen. Instead, was met with the sight of my dull, pasty white ceiling. At that moment, if I had been physically capable, I would have tore that roof off out from over me and created a pyre for me to jump in.

"What the hell…" My hand reached towards my forehead. I was no longer sick, but I was sweating. Slowly, I sat up from my bed to check the time.

8:00 AM

"Oh shit!" I sprung to my feet, balancing myself before taking sprint to my closet to find anything decent. I settled with a light gray hoodie and jeans before taking off down the stairs.

"Seth, is that you?" My mother called out. "You feeling better?"

"Yeah, completely better. I'll see you later!"

I tore my jacket off the rack while grabbing my keys.

"Make sure you're not home too late! We're going over to Billy Black's tonight for dinner."

"Yeah, yeah, promise."

It had snowed again. I quickly found that out after I raced down the few steps of the porch only to slip and fall straight on my butt.

"….Ow." I groaned, stiffly stepping back up and wiping the snow of me.

"You alright, kid?"

I looked over to my father to see him standing by the garage, fiddling with the rifle in his hands.

"I'll live." I responded, quickly scuffling over toward my truck.

"Have fun in school." He called out, to which I waved in response.

The truck started with a low and steady rumble. I turned the dials on the heat, making sure they were on full blast before tossing my jacket and bag onto the passenger seat. My eye then quickly caught something. Looking down at my chest – or rather my neck, I saw what looked to be a necklace. It reminded me of the ones that we were taught to make as kids, and my assumptions were correct as I held in my hands what was a little carving of a tiny bear.

It was Paul's. _Why do I have his necklace?_

 _Paul…. Oh god._ My hands slapped my face as the memories of the dream quickly rushed back to me. I felt the tingling creep of blood rushing to my face as I vividly remembered everything that happened.

"It was so real…. Jeez, why the hell would I dream something like that." I whispered.

Paul was my…. I sighed. Paul was my _best friend_. I couldn't be having these thoughts. God only knows what Paul would say if he knew about it.

 _I wasn't attracted to him. I wasn't. It would be impossible._ Yet as I kept telling myself this, the memories from the dream refused to leave my mind, and I couldn't help but think _what if_. I drove to school, my mind whirling with crazy thoughts and scenarios on _him_ , each one I quickly shut out as I tried my best to focus on the road.

My first class, photography, was a good distraction from my pondering. Angela was as kind as always. She helped me with some problems I was having on a worksheet that was passed out to the class. We had to analyze pictures and explain in detail on what technique was used in order to capture the essence of the picture, such as focal point and motion blur along with a bunch of other stuff that I had problems with memorizing. As the bell rang and everybody began packing up their things, Ms. Cherny reminded everyone that the pictures for the assignment that was passed out a few weeks ago were due on Friday, which I had idiotically forgot about, as I had been too distracted with the whole Paul fiasco.

 _Definitely going to have to take some after school._

I sat in my truck for lunch which was dull. Angela and Ben had both sat at a table with their other friends, and at that moment I didn't have the energy to introduce myself to new people. The radio played what I think was Simon and Garfunkel, and I sat back and listened to the steady beats, trying to ignore my grumbling stomach. I had forgot to bring my wallet with me, so I didn't even have the cash to buy anything.

 _At least it was peaceful._

An abrupt bang hit my ears, and the car shook for a moment. I had made a noise between a groan and a gasp as I turned my head to see what had hit me.

 _Who_ , I should have said. I stared out the back window to see Paul grinning like a mad man. He then hopped over the side of the truck to the driver's side door, only to open it, letting all the warm air blow out through to be replaced by the cold. He hopped up on the step and got right up in my face.

"Smooch, please."

I stared back in shock.

 _Did he just ask me to kiss him?_ _He wants me to kiss him?_

"W-what…. What…. What?" My mind had ceased to work.

He gave me a questioned look. "I said scooch, as in scooch over?"

"Oh!" I said with a bit more surprise than needed, scuffling over to the passenger side. "What are you doing here…." My voice dropped off as I began to take Paul in.

He was shirtless – or really _naked_ if I would call it anything. All he was wearing was a pair of denim shorts that had a ragged look to them. He looked…. Unbelievably gorgeous. His entire body was _toned_ , which surprised me, as last summer when we had gone swimming, he only just had a bit of muscle. But now…. Now he was jacked. It wouldn't have surprised me if someone was quite literally able use his abs as a washboard for Pete's sake. Paul was saying something, but I couldn't even think to pay, my attention too focused downwards to the 'v' shape that seemed to emerge just above….

"You liking what you see?"

My gaze shot back up to Paul, as I saw him wiggling his eyebrows with an almost suggestive look on his face, along with something else I couldn't quite describe.

"N-no! I…. I um…."

Paul's heartily laugh echoed through the car.

"Seth, you are too cute sometimes." He shook his head. My already reddened face turned a shade darker.

"How did you even get here…. And why are you here? And why the hell are you practically naked?"

"So many questions so early in the morning, eh Sherlock?"

I simply gave him a meaningful glare.

"It's twelve-thirty."

"Well _I_ just woke up thirty minutes ago, so it's still morning for me, little pup."

"Well that doesn't answer my questions." I sighed.

"Oh! Oh! If you're Sherlock, can I be Watson!"

 _He's dodging the question._

"What?"

"Or I can be Mary, Sherlock's beautiful wife." He bat his eyes, holding both hands together as he tried his poor attempt to 'woo' me.

"You are absurd, and I gotta get to class." I said, putting my hand onto the handle.

"No, wait wait wait." He said pulling me back in from the half opened door. "Let's go on an adventure!"

"What? I have school, and besides we went on one last night."

"This'll be part two! I've already asked you're mother and she said it was okay!"

I was definitely not convinced.

"You're telling me _Sue Clearwater_ gave me permission to skip half a day of school…." It was more of a statement than a question.

"….Okay fine I didn't ask, but I'll take the blame! Oh _pleeeeeeeeease Seeeeeethy!_ If we don't, I'm going to be so bored."

"Ugh, fine, fine." I said closing the door again. "Where are we even going?"

"That's up to you, my faithful companion." He gave me a smirk before turning the truck completely on from battery power. My stomach rumbled loudly and his smile only got wider.

"I guess that answers that." He swiftly spun the truck out of the lot.

Paul took us to some restaurant-café place, but not before going home to change into something presentable.

"I'll have three quarter-pounder burgers, two large fries and a large coke."

"For the both of you?" The waiter questioned.

"No, what are you gonna get, Seth?" Paul asked me, clearly oblivious to the astonished look the waiter was giving him. I stifled a laugh.

"I'll just have _one_ of everything he's having, thanks."

"O-of course…. Right away." The man walked away, but not before giving us one last glance.

"Ya know, I've been meaning to ask what it's like to have the stomach of three full grown men."

Paul once again gave me one of his radiant smiles, and I couldn't help but be disappointed when it went away.

 _Oh god, stop this, Seth!_ Why was I all of a sudden thinking of Paul in this way? What had changed? Nothing felt like it made sense as I knew I was becoming more and more attracted to the boy sitting across from me. _It's all because of that dream…._ Maybe it was my subconscious telling me that it just wants romance again, and it's picking Paul because he's the only one I've been with the past two days. Whatever it was, I needed to act on it fast before I got too desperate and ended up making a move on my best friend.

 _I have to get my mind off this._

I glanced around. The café was actually quite nice. It had an almost cabin feel to it, making it cozy while still keeping up to a more modern look. The food arrived shortly, and I could honestly tell who was most excited for this meal, as I looked towards Paul wearing the face of someone who had just won a million dollars. With the first bite of his burger, he ate half of it, swallowing without even so much as chewing. Sometimes he acted so inhuman.

"My knowledge on CPR is quite limited, so if you would please slow down to ease my nerves." I half-joked, but I was only met with deaf ears as he continued to happily chow down on his second burger in less than a minute.

The rest of the dinner we discussed ideas on what to do after. Paul had suggested things like surfing or swimming, which I kindly reminded him that it was less than thirty-five degrees out, and unlike him I didn't have my own built in radiator. I mentioned my project for photography class, so he agreed to go along sightseeing with me.

"I bet you'd get some good shots down at the beach."

I rolled my eyes. "You're just saying that so you can go swimming."

"Maybe…." He gave me a cheeky smile. As we walked back out the doors of the little restaurant, Paul quickly broke up into a sprint towards the truck. "I'll drive!"

I chuckled to myself.

Reaching the truck, I opened the passenger door. "I'm perfectly able to drive, you know."

"I know, it's a control thing." He winked.

The beach was freezing, but the scenery was magnificent. It was perfect for getting some of the shots I needed. As we stepped out of the truck, Paul quickly discarded his pants, shoes, and shirt and happily jogged out to the dock in just his underwear. My gaze on him lasted longer than I had liked, to which I quickly tore it away to catch sight of some cool looking driftwood. I hauled out my camera from my bag. Walking around it a few times, I tried lining up the perfect shot where I would be able to get the eerie trees along with the foggy ocean.

"COWABUNGA!" I heard Paul scream, making a crater in the water. I watched him for a moment, as it seemed like he was trying his hardest to get my attention.

"I'm best friends with a nine-year-old."

An hour soon passed, and I had been able to get quite a few good shots for my project. It wasn't enough though, and I would have to take some tomorrow as well.

 _Hmm…. Might as well savor the moment._ I angled myself so I was back on to the sea as I lifted the camera up to face me.

"Photobomb!" Paul came out from nowhere, wrapping his wet arms around my waist as he leaned his chin on my shoulder.

"Photo-hog." I laughed while clicking the shutter.

The film extracted, and as I took out the picture, I quickly realised that Paul was still hugging me from the back; his face inches from mine.

I thought back to the dream, and like the dream, I waited, staring into the face that was less than an inch from mine. Paul's gaze tore away from the picture to glance at me, and my heart did one of those skip-beat things.

Was he going to kiss me? Did I want him to kiss me? The more and more I stared, the more scared I became, everything rapidly turning too real.

 _Oh no…._

"Uh," I muttered, breaking free from his tight grasp. "I-I should head back s-soon. Apparently I'm going to be having dinner at Billy Black's tonight, so…." I rubbed the back of my neck, refusing to make eye contact with the very naked Paul.

"Oh, okay…." He paused for a moment, only to begin making his way over to the truck. Luckily Paul was completely dressed when I got over there. I hopped into the vehicle, putting my camera in the bag and taking out the other photos I took to look over. Skimming through, I was quite happy how they all turned out. When I got to the last one, I felt my heart skip a beat.

The picture of me and Paul came out perfectly. I had a grin on my face from laughing while Paul had on a perfect smile – one with dimples.

"Oh picture time!" Paul exclaimed, taking all the pictures from my hands before I could voice protest. He heavily studied the pictures, praising me each time he switched to a new one, which I mumbled an embarrassed thanks. When he got to the last one – the one of him and myself, I watched as flickers of emotion seemed to cross his face.

"Do you mind if I keep this one?" He asked shyly, still staring down at the picture.

"Oh, yeah of course."

He gave a quick thanks before shoving it into his pocket.

We drove back to my house in silence. Arriving in the drive way, Paul parked before turning towards me.

"Today was a lot of fun." He spoke in earnest.

"Yeah, it really was." I smiled. I noticed how his hair was still quite soaked from the beach. "God, you're hair is still dripping wet." I laughed, lifting my hand to his forehead to wipe away the water threatening to fall into his eyes. While doing so, Paul seemed to gaze towards me with an expression I quickly recognised but couldn't quite pin down, and I stared back, questioning whether I should ask or not.

"Guess I should get going." Paul said abruptly, reaching for the handle of the door.

"Wait, how are you going to get home?"

"I'll find a way." He smirked.

"Let me drive you, I don't mind, really."

"Seth it's fine." He assured, but I wasn't having it.

"Well if you wont let me then take my truck home then."

"But Seth-"

"Please." I cut him off.

He seemed to think for a moment, only to grin slightly.

"Okay, at least this'll give me the excuse to pick you up for school tomorrow."

"You're going to school?" I asked surprised as I felt myself perk up.

"No…. I was just going to drop you off."

"Oh."

 _Well that's disappointing._ I reached down for my bag, flinging it over my shoulder as I glanced back at him.

"See you tomorrow then."

"Yeah." He responded, turning the engine back on.

Stepping out of the truck, I was quickly greeted by my father who had been watching us from the garage door.

I walked around towards the porch, but not before turning back towards Paul. We both shared a quick glace before Paul pulled out and drove out of sight.

Walking into the house, I was welcomed by my mother, along with an array of dishes that she made specially for tonight. I greeted her like usual and she welcomed me home in return. I made my way up to my room to prepare for the little shindig that was about to happen soon. I took the photos out of my bag and placed them on my desk. Numbering each one, I then placed them on top of my books before sauntering over to my closet to pick out something suitable. I settled for a pair of dark khaki pants along with a flannel shirt. After changing, I laid back on my bed as I waited, thinking over what happened today.

Out of the cluster that was my mind, there was one thing I knew for certain. One thing that no matter how much I tried to ignore it or push away, it kept coming back, slamming into me like a freight train.

I was attracted to Paul. How much exactly, I didn't know.

I viciously grabbed my hair, pulling as I groaned in frustration. How could I let this happen? What could I even possibly do in this situation – hope these feeling diminish? As much as I hoped such a thing were possible, I doubt it would happen if I kept hanging out with Paul, but it was very unlikely that I was going to stop that, especially since I just got him back.

My mother called out to me, announcing that we were leaving. I pulled back on my jacket. Glancing at the books on my shelf, I remembered that I had bought new ones. Out of the two, I chose Frankenstein to take with me. _At least I'll keep myself somewhat occupied._ I hurried down the stairs to assist my mother with bringing the entrées out to the car. As everything was loaded in, I climbed into the back seat along with Leah, and we made haste towards the Black house.

Pulling into their familiar red house, I stepped out with one of the trays of food. There were already two vehicles pulled up, one of them a red truck with gigantic fenders that easily looked like it was made before the nineteen-fifties. We walked in through the door without knocking, as that's the way it was here in La Push. Everyone knew everyone, so knocking was something that was out of the ordinary. Billy greeted us right away and directed us as to where we could place the food. Leah headed straight to the couch in the living room; phone in hand. I was about to do the same with my book until I was greeted by Jacob Black.

He looked a lot different than the last time I had seen him. His hair had been cut short, and his baby-like face had become more masculine. The most noticeable thing though was his size. He had easily grown a good five inches or _more_. From the sheer height difference alone, I had guessed that he was at least a foot higher than me.

Next to him was a girl. She was about my height, with pale skin and a heart shaped face, with long hair along with brown eyes. Jacob introduced her as Bella.

 _Oh, so this was the Bella Paul was taking about._

As the night went on, I found myself sitting with Jacob and Bella as they went on with casual chitchat, and every so often I had to remind them that I was still there – only to Jacob though, as Bella tried keeping the conversation between the three of us, which had been quite thoughtful of her. I had learned that incidentally Bella actually was Chief Swan's daughter, which made me feel quite stupid as I quickly remembered what her last name was.

In a way, I had always admired Jacob. He was tall, extremely handsome, and always seemed to be good with the ladies. That last one seemed to bother me less now though, as the only person I have ever thought of like that in a while was Paul.

The night grew short and soon enough we were taking our leave again. I said my goodbyes to both Jacob and Bella, feeling as though I had made a new friend tonight.

As we pulled back into our home, I noticed that my truck was parked there again, and I instantly felt disappointment wash over me, as this was obviously Paul's way of telling me he couldn't drive me tomorrow. I made my way into the house in short steps, my gaze hung low.

 _Was it completely unreasonable and overly dramatic to be this upset?_

"Seth, hon, are you alright?" My mother asked.

"What? Oh, yeah, yeah I'm fine." I brushed her off, making my way up to my room. Closing my door behind me.

I glanced over towards my bed and almost slammed back into my door from surprise.

"Okay, why the _hell_ can't you act like a normal person for just a second." I demanded to know, pointing at the figure on my bed.

"Being normal's for squares." Paul got up and strolled over to stand in front of me.

"So does not being normal require you to commit breaking and entering?" I asked, a big grin forming on my mouth. "What are you doing here anyways?

"You're window was unlocked, so _technically_ I didn't break anything. Besides, I didn't have anything to do tonight, so I figured why not have a sleepover with the little pup." He lifted a bag containing a blanket and PJ's.

"Ahh, and I'm guessing _I_ would be that _little pup_?" I raised a brow at him.

"Who else?" He grinned.

"Okay... But if my mom find you up here, you're the one who's going to be doing all the explaining."

"Fine by me." He sung.

I opened my closet and pulled out a shirt and pajama pants. When I turned around, Paul was already changing into his pajamas. I felt my cheeks heat up before glancing away.

"I'll be right back." I mumbled, walking towards the door.

"Where ya' headed?" He tilted his head.

"Just going to change."

"Seth…" He gave me an unimpressed look. "We've known each other all our lives, you can change here."

"Y-yeah, of course I can."

Retreating back to my closet, I changed out of my shirt. I glanced behind me to see Paul occupied with something on my desk. _Now's my chance._ I rapidly hauled my pants down, doing an awkward dance out of them before quickly jumping into my pj's and hauling them up, glancing back again to make sure Paul didn't see.

"So, what do you want to do?" I turned around, asking him.

He let out a heavy yawn. "Hmm, I don't care. Up t'you." He blinked a few times, trying to wake himself up.

"You seem tired…. Let's just get some sleep, yeah?"

" _Nooooo!_ " He emitted a childish groan. "Don't let my sleepiness intervene with you're fun time."

"You're not, I promise." I said, pushing him back onto my bed. "I'm pretty tired too, lets just get some sleep."

"Mmmkay." He grabbed a pillow from the bed, placing it down onto the floor. He reached into the bag he had and hauled out a blanket that looked thinner than the curtains hanging up in my windows.

"What are you doing?"

"Getting my bed ready."

"Paul, it's a double bed, we can both sleep in it."

He yawned again. "Are you sure?"

"Yes, now get in." I commanded.

I shut the lights off before climbing in the bed onto the side closest to the wall. Paul followed my lead and Climbed in next to me, pulling up the covers as he lay facing me.

"G'night little pup." He mumbled, half-asleep.

I lightly chuckled, looking down at the necklace that was still around my neck.

"Goodnight, Paul."


	6. Washington

_**Washington**_

* * *

"Mmhm…." I mumbled, opening my eyes to the familiar view of my ceiling.

"Good morning, little pup."

My head clocked sideways, taking in the sight of the Greek god that lay next to me. His head was propped up by his elbow as he greeted me with a warming smile; chocolate brown eyes so full of bliss, and I couldn't help but stare, wondering how I could've ever become friends with someone so magnificent.

"G'morning." I murmured, turning my whole body towards him. "Did you know you like to cuddle in your sleep? I woke up three times last night from being smothered by your arms."

He let out a light laugh, and I couldn't help but be memorized as the sunlight gently came in through the window to shine onto his already radiant face. Even if I had decided to not act on these feeling I was having, I could at least still admire how beautiful he was.

"What do you feel like doing today?" He sat up from the bed stretching his arms, making his shirt lift and giving me a peak of the smooth skin underneath.

"We're doing a part three?"

Paul let out a slight gasp. "Did you really think you were going to get away from me, Seth Clearwater?"

"Guess not." I gave an overexaggerated sigh, only to look over towards him with a slight grin. "You do realise if we keep this up my grades are going to get pummeled."

He dramatically whipped his head as if he were in a soap opera. "Are you calling me a bad influence?"

"Are you saying swimming in the ocean in thirty degree weather makes you a good one?" I cockily raised a brow.

"….Fair enough. Want breakfast?" He attempted to say casually, but the hint of eagerness was hard to miss.

"Yeah, sure."

We didn't bother to change out of our pajamas before heading down the stairs into the main area. As I walked towards the kitchen to greet my mother, she spotted me, a stern look plastered on her face.

"Seth Clearwater, why did I get a call from the school saying that you missed-" She stopped herself, noticing the figure next to me in the doorway. Her face then melted into a sweet smile. "Why hello, Paul. What are you doing here so early?"

"Hello, Sue. You're looking as young and beautiful as ever." Paul responded.

"Kiss ass." I muttered. My mother glared at me before turning her attention back to Paul.

"I actually slept over, I hope that isn't a problem." His sympathetic voice was obviously fake, but honestly, Paul could have killed a man in front of her and she probably wouldn't've cared.

"Oh of course it's not my dear, you are welcome here anytime you want." She then turned her attention back to me. "Why did you leave school at lunch?" She demanded to know. I simply gestured over my shoulder to where Paul stood.

Paul looked away, slightly embarrassed. "It's kind of my fault. I had asked him to."

To my surprise, her anger completely washed away. "Oh then don't worry one bit, it's completely fine."

 _Wait, what?_

"Sue, would it be a problem if I stole Seth away from school today as well?"

"Oh sure! In fact, this works out perfectly. I just got a call to go into work so I'm going to need you're truck, Seth."

I looked at the both of them in shock. Not only did Paul get my mother to completely forget about me skipping school, he also got me another day off.

My mom began walking out of the kitchen. "Okay, I'll see you boys later. Don't burn down the house while I'm gone." She quickly peaked her head back in. "That last part was directed at you, Seth." I didn't have the chance to respond as she left the house without another word.

"Okay, how the hell did you just do that." I spun on my heels, pointing a finger at Paul.

"You just gotta have the charm." He flashed a grin.

"Hmm, I bet." I was unconvinced. "Breakfast?"

"Breakfast."

I walked over to the cabinets, taking out a frying pan and placing it on the stove. After turning on the dials, Paul snuck up behind me with three packs of sausage in hand and an eager look on his face.

"We _need_ to cook these."

"And _you_ _need_ to go to the doctors for a cholesterol check." I retorted, poking him directly in his chest before taking them from his hands.

"I can assure you I am as healthy as a horse, pup."

"Whatever you say, dude."

* * *

"Now that was a good meal." Paul spoke, patting his stomach while looking at peace.

"Don't remind me." For ten minutes I had to sit through watching Paul scarf down sausage after sausage, only to feel sick half way through and lose my appetite. Paul of course then ate my meal along with his own, which made me feel worse than I already had been. "At this rate, you're gonna eat half of my house." I chuckled. "Whoever this 'love at first sight' person is, you better hope they can keep up with the black hole you call a stomach."

"Oh, I'm sure they'll be able to." Paul gave me a hellish grin.

"So, you still never told me who she was." I spoke, propping my elbows up onto the table and leaning into them, waiting to hear more about the person he seemed so infatuated with.

"Uhm, well uh…" He seemed to get a bit nervous.

"Oh come on, Paul, I'm you're best friend for crying out loud! You know you can tell me anything, I wont judge." I said with a cheeky smile. "You could tell me if she's… famous? Have I seen her in any movies?!" I turned it into a question. He seemed to find humor in it, which I took as a _no_. "Okay. Is… she a grandma?"

That seemed to hit his funny bone slightly harder. "No…no." He said in between laughs. "No, there's no grandma."

"Hmm…"

 _Why else wouldn't he tell me…_

"Oh… Are you…" I couldn't get the words to leave my mouth. "R-related to h-her?"

Paul's laugh roared through the room now, as he began clutching his sides. "God no!" He shouted.

"Oh thank god." I said with a bit of relief. "What else could it be then!" I said, flinging my arms in exasperation. "Is she…" I felt myself gasp as a smile met my lips. "Is she a… _he_?"

It was an obvious joke, but Paul flinched.

Moment's passed, and he seemed to be no longer laughing. My mind flipped off for a second, as if it was unable to process what I'd just seen. _Why isn't he saying no?_ I questioned. There was no way… no way that he would like a guy. Hell I watched countless times as he rejected a ton of them in his sophomore year alone.

The question make my voice falter.

"Is he a guy?" I asked, voice barely a whisper. His gaze was directed down at the empty plate in front of him, his eyes refusing to meet my own.

"Paul," I spoke, placing my hand over his own that was on the table. He flinched again, but he didn't move his hand away. "you know if… if it was a guy, I would be completely okay with that right?"

His eyes flicked up, as if he were surprised by what I had said.

"Really?" His voice croaked.

I felt myself let out a breath I didn't know I was holding in, realising that by him asking that question, it confirmed my question.

"Of course. You'll always be my best friend no matter who you love." I gave what I said some thought. "Actually I take that back, because if you fell in love with my sister, I'd have to kill 'ya." I smiled, and his heartfelt laugh returned once again.

His face expressed so many emotions, each one looking so fragile. Huffing out a shaky breath, he flipped his hand over to hold mine. "Thank you." His voice whispered, squeezing my hand with affection.

I smiled back, surprised by how the whole mood of the room changed so drastically within minutes.

"How long have you known?" I questioned, as it peaked my curiosity.

"About?" His brows furrowed, and I just rolled my eyes.

"About you liking guys, duh!"

"Oh," His eyes lit up in realization. "well, it was actually when I first… saw him. When I first saw him, I realised that I liked him without question." I gave him a puzzled look.

"Yeah, I was confused too." He continued. "It was like, all of a sudden, he mattered to me more than anything else in the world." His chocolate brown eyes were burning with intensity. "I almost freaked completely out, but I guess there was a little part of me that always known about my feelings for him."

"Known? But I thought it happened when you just met him?" I was confused again.

"No uh, known that I liked guys." It seemed like a backpedal more than a mistake, but I ignored it.

"Do you know how he feels?"

"Well, no, not exactly…" He scratched his face, avoiding my gaze.

"Oh, don't tell me that you're too nervous! What happened to all that overconfidence that you've always seem to have."

He chuckled. "Well it's not exactly that simple. I uh… I can't really _tell him_."

"Why not?"

"Beats me. Sam thinks that-" He cut himself off, freezing.

"Wait wait wait, hold up. You're telling me _Sam_ wont let you?"

He guiltily looked away. It reminded me of that time on the beach where he refused to even face me as he spoke the words that would haunt me for weeks. I felt a sudden wave of irritation hit, realising just how tightly Sam had Paul in his grasp, and for whatever reason, Paul doesn't seem to be fighting back. I wondered if it was the same for his other followers.

"Paul… why are you listening to him? What could he possibly have on you that's forcing you to do… this!" I gestured to nothing in particular.

"Seth, it's more complicated than you know."

"Then tell me! Tell me how I can help – I want to help!" I pleaded.

"Seth please." He warned. "It's… not something that can be helped."

My frustration was building up, and I knew if I didn't calm down I would only make things worse. But I just couldn't stop it. I couldn't stop the immersive rage that seemed to just flare to life out of no where.

"Bullshit!" I shouted at him, making him jump in his seat in surprise. "What ever he has on you – what ever sort of blackmail or whatever – I _can_ help. Stop thinking that I can't, because guess what Paul, I'm not some damn weakling that can't handle anything _despite_ what you may think!" I felt hot. Something inside me was burning, and I didn't know how to stop. "And hell, even if-" I stopped.

Paul was looking at me. Not with anger, and not with surprise, but fear. Abruptly, he stood from his seat, quickly hurrying over to me, and he crouched down in front with out a word, and pressed his hands to my face.

I didn't speak. Maybe it was from the realization or shock of what I had just did, which seemed completely out of character for me, but there was one thing I knew for certain. As I slapped my hand over my mouth, I mumbled into my hands four words.

"I'm gonna throw up." My voice didn't sound like me for some reason. And I pushed through Paul as I launch myself through the room and up the stairs to the bathroom. I flung the cover up just in time as my stomach began heaving. Paul close on my tail, soon arrived by my side as I spewed out the contents of breakfast. A sudden shiver went through me, and I felt myself becoming chillingly cold.

"Seth," Paul said to me, his voice almost scared sounding. "We need to get you outside, _right now_."

I recognized this voice now. It was the voice he used when he knew something _serious_ was happening, and every time it was used, I always felt the spike of fear. Fear of what unknown lies ahead. But as I threw up again, the voice didn't bother me too much.

"Mmm, but the toilet is so cool." I liked the coldness of it, because despite how cold I felt on the outside, my insides felt as if though they were getting warmer.

"Seth." His voice came out powerful. "We are getting you outside this instant." And in that moment, Paul picked me up fireman's style, and started to sprint out to the fenced backyard.

"Put me down! Put me down!" I shouted as we were now out in the snow. He complied to my request, practically dropping me as I began heaving once again. But this time, I didn't feel any bile start to rise, and instead I felt a more intense heat. Something so fierce, like fire began running through my body. Every part of me began itching, and I wanted to scratch, but my arms began to feel so heavy, so i laid there, gritting my teeth through it.

Paul stood feet away now, looking like he was watching someone slowly die, as the pain on his face was unmistakable.

"G-G-GAH!" I gasped. The pain was unbearable now, and I couldn't help but be terrified as to what was even happening. "P-P-PAUL!" I shouted, but he didn't move. He simply watched me with desperation.

 _What was happening? How do I get this to stop? I had to do something._

I started forcing my erratic breathing to turn into steady ones, and I clenched my eyes shut. I no longer shook, as I stiffened my body to stop it from shaking uncontrollably. Moment's passed, the only thing I not being able to control was the grinding of my teeth as the fire seemed to fade out in a slow and steady stream, until eventually it was gone, and I was left lying on the ground, shaking from the freezing snow.

Paul was by my side now, and he was looking at me with confusion. "Seth?" He choked out.

"Mmhm?" I mumbled, not able to open my eyes as a sudden wave of tiredness hit me.

" _Seth, wake up. Look at me_." He demanded. I opened my eyes, seeing his frightened, tear-filled face.

"Why are you cryin'" I murmured, forcing my head to lift slightly.

"Jesus Christ, Seth." I heard Paul's choked up voice say. "How… how did you stop it?" He said, but it seemed that he was thinking aloud.

"Mm, stop what? Stop the fire?"

"Yes," He laughed, though it sounded more like he choked it out. "How did you stop the _fire_."

"I told you I was strong." I felt my mouth crack into a smile before I felt myself drift out of consciousness.

* * *

My eyes opened, and for a second, I felt confused as to where I was, though I quickly recognised the tv that was across from me. I slowly propped myself up on my elbow, only to have my other hand shoot out to my head as I registered the pain there.

"What the hell." I groaned out, only to feel the couch shift slightly. Then out of nowhere, in front of me was Paul.

"Just take it easy, alright." He said, holding onto my arms as I tried sitting up.

"Why does my head kill so much? What happened?"

Paul hesitated. "What… what do you remember?"

I sat there, trying to think of the last thing that came to mind.

"We… were eating breakfast." I paused. "You told me you liked a guy, and then…"

I couldn't remember anything after. _What could I have done to have my head hurt this bad? "_ Did I slip and fall somehow? _"_

"Yes." Paul said. "You uh, you went t-to stand up from you're seat, and then you slipped and fell."

"Oh." I had no reason to doubt it.

"You gave me quite the fright." Paul laughed, but there was no humor in his voice.

"I'm sorry." I meant it, but he only shook his head.

"No apologies needed, little pup. Are you feeling okay?"

"Yeah. Yeah I'm good." I said, putting my feet out and trying to stand, only to lose balance slightly, but Paul was quick to steady me. "I'm good, I'm good, I promise."

He laughed – this time a real one – and I felt myself join him.

"There's…" I wavered my finger back and forth. "There's two of you now, right?"

He laughed again. "Yeah."

The rest of the morning went by in a blur. I slept for a little whiles again, and Paul sat at the end of the couch, refusing to leave my side despite me telling him that I really did feel alright and was just a bit tired. When Lunch arrived, Paul of course got food – boiled hot dogs, which somehow managed to get burnt. That I would never understand. At one time, Paul's watch began beeping, and he announced that he had to leave to do some errands, which he promised over and over that he'd return as quick as possible. I had to practically push him out my door and lock it in order for him to leave, but I did feel the tinge of disappointment after I was alone. I roamed up to my room, and seeing the pictures that I had taken yesterday, I quickly remembered that I still needed to take a few more for tomorrow's class. My head still pained, so I took some aspirin to ease the pain before grabbing my keys and roaming out to the truck, bag in hand.

I drove around the reservation for a while, looking for places that would get me good shots, but alas, I couldn't find anything worth taking, so I made the decision to drive up to Forks. I put one of my favorite CD tracks in the stereo, and I felt myself relax more as I drove up the worn-out road. One of the songs that played – my favorite – made me feel some sort of emotion as it reminded me of the exact day I sat in the passenger seat of this truck while my father drove up to Forks. We were headed to a funeral – my grandpa's.

I was ten years old then, so I was old enough to realize I wouldn't be seeing him again soon. It was a sad day, but in a sense, it was still beautiful. I remember on that day, it was the warmest time Washington had been for a decade. The sun had shined so brightly, with such warmth, and I couldn't help but think how it was even possible for such a sad event to happen on such a beautiful day.

I drove around Fork's aimlessly, hoping at least something would catch my eye, but with no such luck. I strayed out of bounds for a while, and was soon about to give up until I spotted a slight opening by the road I was on – which I almost completely missed. It looked like it went on forever, but having nothing else to do, I decided on exploring further out of my comfort zone would be fun. I turned up onto it, which I almost immediately felt claustrophobic as the forest that was so close to the small road was extremly thick.

The drive felt somewhat eerie, but also peaceful in it's own way. The sky was an almost cloudless blue, and the sun was bright in the sky – something very rare for Forks. The road seemed to go on forever, but soon enough something came into view.

It was a house. One that looked to be three stories tall. As I got closer, I began to think that it looked somewhat abandoned, and I only confirmed my suspicion as I looked into one of the huge windows to see absolute emptiness. I parked the truck before stepping out with my bag.

Up close, it was incredible. It had to be at least over a hundred years old, but in a strange way looked to still be in mint condition. I walked to up the front door, but didn't even think about entering. It was bad enough I was probably on private property, let alone commit breaking and entering. I walked around to the side, and then to the back, taking in the magnificence of it all.

The back side of the house was almost entirely made of windows, and you could easily see straight into the haunting emptiness. I opened up my bag, pulling out my camera, and began snapping photos of it, not caring whether if I was doing the correct things for my project or not.

A wetness ran down my hand, and I looked at the tiny streak of water, questioning where it came from. My eyes shifted skyward, and my question was answered.

It was snowing. The sky so blue and clear, with barely any clouds within sight, and it was snowing. I felt myself stare in awe as to how such a thing were possible, and what were the chances of such things happening.

"Incredible." I whispered.

I began taking pictures of the sky – trying my best to angle it perfectly so I could get the camera to pick up on the faint snowflakes that were falling. My film soon ran out however, and I was left sitting there, in the back yard of some strange one hundred year-old home, gazing at the sky with the same expression of awestruck. I don't remember how much time passed, but as it did, so did my thoughts, as one of the first things that I remembered was the words Paul spoke to me.

" _Well, it was actually when I first… saw him. When I first saw him, I realized that I liked him without question."_

Paul liked a guy. For some reason, the fact that Paul liked guys hadn't fully registered in my brain until that moment, and as it did, my wandering mind began to think. Think of scenarios of me and Paul. Ones where we were… together. I couldn't help the smile that crept up on my face when I did so.

Being with Paul forever. That was something I could get on board with.

But, he liked someone else.

 _He loved someone else._

The depressing thoughts soon came, and I all to quickly stood up from the ground. I glanced around, seeing the once blue sky now a warm orange. I questioned how much time had passed, and when I hopped back in my truck, I looked at the stereo to see that I had been there for a few hours. Paul was probably freaking out.

I drove back home, not letting my mind wander again, as I knew I'd only make myself sadder than I needed to be. Soon reaching the outskirts of La Push, I turned onto the road to my house, and the sight in front of me made my eyes narrow.

There was a crowd on my front lawn. I slowed the truck down a bit, as I stared at the driveway to see a few vehicles, along with…

 _Sam Uley._

Sam was on the porch, his gaze now lingering on me, and I stared back, questioning the look he was giving me. There were others. I recognized Jared almost immediately, along with Embry Call. None of them were wearing shirts, and only had on a pair of denim shorts – like what Paul wore yesterday.

Something ran out in front of the truck, and I luckily slammed on the brakes before anything happened. I watched as Jacob Black, who _too_ was only wearing denim shorts, run around my truck and into the woods by the road; I staring after him, wondering where in the world he was going.

I slowly turned into the driveway, the front door to the house opened, and out came Paul. His eyes almost immediately landed on me, and as I saw the look on his face, my stomach flipped. My hands which almost immediately began shaking, turned off the truck. I didn't bother to pull the key out of the ignition as I stepped out. Paul was almost immediately in front of me. My gaze shifted to the boys behind him; every single one with an expression i couldn't fathom. I looked back to Paul, not saying a single word despite the many questions I had. He let out a large breath, before his mouth began forming the words which I knew I was dreading.

"Let's go for a drive." He said, with the exact same expression he wore on the beach that day. I knew what was coming, but I didn't know if I would be able to bare it again.

I knew it was too good to be true. I knew that what ever happened in these past few days weren't enough to rekindle any kind of friendship that had reformed. The look on his face said it all.

We were in the truck before I even realized, and we were driving somewhere. I didn't know where. I didn't ask. The silence was horrifying, and I couldn't help but try to fight back tears as we made our way to whatever destination.

We ended up at the beach. I almost was surprised that I felt somewhat shocked that he picked the same stage for the re-enactment of this little play. He switched off the engine, and the silence that followed was deafening. He didn't speak first – just like last time – so I knew I had to be the one to start.

"Why are you doing this." I whimpered out, hearing just how pathetic I sounded. "You promised you wouldn't do this again..." He turned to me, and the expression that haunted me was no longer there, and was just left with confusion with a hint of sadness.

"Why did you climb into my room that day? If you knew we were gonna end back up here days later anyways?" I wasn't directly asking him more so than almost asking myself.

"Seth…?" Paul's confusion only worsened, and I couldn't understand what he could possibly be confused about.

"You're doing this _again_." I hissed through my teeth. "You begged for my forgiveness and friendship, and now you're gonna end it – _again._ "

"Seth, no that isn't-"

"I don't get you!" I shouted, now turning fully towards the boy.

"Seth, I-"

"You know what, enough!" I was exasperated. "After everything we've been through, years and _years_ of friendship, you're now just… Just doing… THIS! _AGAIN!_ You know what, I can't even believe-"

"Seth!" Paul cut me off, putting both of his hands on my face. "I'm not here to end our friendship."

A second passed, and all I could let out was a simple "Oh." My face turned a bright red from absolute embarrassment. "I'm sorry, I shouldn't have assumed that… "

"No, I should be apologizing. You had every reason to assume that, and bringing you here for this was completely stupid of me."

My brow furrowed. "This?" What was ' _this',_ And why did he seem so saddened by it.

His face was pained again, and he stared down at his lap.

When he spoke, his voice was low and careful.

"Seth, what I'm about to tell you might…" He sighed with sorrow. "I just want you to know that I love you, and I am here for you." My stomach dropped, and I tried to prepare myself for what was coming.

"O-okay just tell what's wrong because you're really staring to freak me out right now."

He looked up, and when his eyes finally met mine, they looked like they held the weight of the world – my world.

"Seth, you're father had a heart attack... and he didn't make it."

* * *

AN: HEY so I don't usually do author's notes but I figured why not. Sorry this chapter took so long, but man I had complete writers block for the past month, and had no ideas on how to advance the story to where I wanted it to be, so sorry if this chapter is a tiny bit short. Luckily I think it turned out okay, and I'm glad I'm passed it, as I now am able to get into the chapters I'm really excited to write about.

Seth almost phased! Whoa that's something cool amirite,,,,

I really just want to thank everyone for continuing to read this sub-par story, and I hope you continue to do so!


	7. The Beginning

_**The Beginning**_

* * *

 **May**

The tree outside my window had begun sprouting leaves, which was my first indication that winter was ending, though last week there was a heavy storm, so lots of snow still blanketed the ground. The days were getting slightly warmer and longer, so I found myself less often traveling to the thermostat, which was a good thing, as it meant I wouldn't have to leave the cozy confines of my bed, though it now did feel like I didn't have any other reason to get up.

It's been a month since my father left. I didn't like to think about it, but some days it was really hard not to. How could I not, when everything in the house further reminded me of his absence. That's why I stayed in my room. Stayed hidden under the thick blankets of my bed, staring at the plain wall, doing everything in my power not to fall asleep, because when I did, that's when the nightmares began.

My emotions… are deadened, and I hadn't grieved for a while. In point of fact, the only emotion that I've managed to express was gratitude, and that was only when Paul came to visit. He brought me food, drinks, and other things that he thought I needed, but I could tell how this was affecting him – seeing me in this… zombie like state. Some days I considered doing at least one thing productive, for Paul that is, but every time I tried doing so, I ended up failing miserably, and fleeing back to the shelter that was my bed.

That day would be so clearly etched into my mind for as long as I'll live. I remember the silence that lingered in the truck when he told me what had happened. I remember myself denying it over and over again, choking back on tears, until finally my barrier shattered, and I was left crying and screaming into Paul's shoulder. I remembered when they lowered him into the grave, and Paul had to get me out of there before I had a breakdown in front of the whole town – everyone in La Push knew my father, so it was only right for everyone to be there for the last time we would see him.

He had a heart attack - my father always had a weak heart. He was out hunting with Chief Swan and a few others when it happened. At first, I had assumed that the gunfire possibly triggered it, but I knew my father better than that. He would never be frightened by such a thing, so I knew that couldn't have possibly cause it.

After the funeral, I felt almost lost, as if I just didn't know where to go from there. That whole week, I kept waking up in the middle of the night, hoping that I was just having a reoccurring nightmare, but quickly finding that wasn't the case, as I ran to my parents' room only to find my lone mother.

Mom and Leah have gotten better, and it felt as if though I was lagging behind. They were trying to move on with their lives while I remained frozen. But of course, _everyone grieves differently_. That's what a man at my father's funeral told me. His name was Carl.

I knew that whatever I was doing wasn't the right way to go about things, but it was almost like I couldn't even stop it. I couldn't stop the unpredictable waves of fatigue that seemed to wash over me many times during the day. I couldn't fight the feeling of not wanting to move – to do even simple tasks such as changing out of my pajamas or using the bathroom.

Paul had been trying to help, and I could see that I was wearing him down. I was acting completely and utterly selfish, as instead of trying to take care of my family, I had someone taking care of me. I was weak when my family needed me the most. I had asked Paul if he knew anything at all on how my father died, and the words he spoke to me almost made me want to vomit.

"A bear attack." He said. A bear wouldn't possibly be out at that time during the winter, so I knew that there was only one other possibility as to what was seen.

It had to be the wolf. The gigantic black, bear-like, wolf that had been in the area, and that I'd seen twice now. There was no other explanation. The more I thought about it, the more real it seemed to become, and all of the theories I had surrounding the wolf – the ones about the tribe's legends and Sam Uley – seemed to disappear, as I knew that that there was no possible way that this wolf was anything but a _monster_.

I was sat at my desk, staring at nothing in particular really. That day was the first day we had a guest come to visit that wasn't Paul. Our neighbor, Mrs. Adelman, came over to drop off some casserole she had made, which I listened intently through my open door as she and my mother began conversing. One of the things that Mrs. Adelman mentioned had caught my ear, as she said there have been numerous _bear attacks_ happening as of late.

At first, I hadn't the clue on what to do, but I knew I _had_ to do something – for my father that is. I wasn't going to let this go, and even as I began preparing for what I was about to do, I didn't have the clue on where to start.

That is until I began rummaging through old photos. One in particular had caught my eye. It was the one of the majestic deer I had taken months ago, and as I began staring at it, reliving that special memory I had with my father, my gaze focused in on the corner of the picture. At first, it was completely missable, but at I concentrated harder and harder on that one point, I began to see the outline of it. The large figure so keenly tucked away in the shadows as it had watched our every move. It sent a shiver down my spine as I realized just how close it was to us, without us even knowing.

It was the wolf. It must have been trailing the deer when it caught wind of us, and noticed us as a possible threat. Why it wouldn't simply just attack us baffled me, and even made me think back to the day it had leaped out over me in that hiking trail. At first, I had thought that it was friendly to humans, but now that couldn't possibly be the answer, as it was picking off innocent lives in the woods.

It wasn't much of a lead, but it was the best I could get. That night, I made my preparations for the coming day.

I awoke in the middle of the night, hearing someone's door open, but I didn't bother to check, as I already knew who it was. Leah had lately been sneaking out late at night to go god knows where. Usually my curiosity would get the best of me in such a situation, but I hadn't been too bothered by it. I hadn't been too bothered by anything really – besides the malicious wolf that killed my father of course, but I was already acting on that situation. I closed my eyes again; sleeping a dreamless sleep.

I awoke early in the morning – before my mother – and got on some warm clothes before retrieving my bag, and tiptoeing down the stairs and into the garage.

People would probably call what I was about to do insane. Suicidal even. Of course, none of those people were around to tell me that, so I continued onward, loading up my fathers hunting rife, storing a few extra bullets in my pocket, and grabbing my father's bow, arrows, and quiver. Tossing it all in the bed of the truck, I went around the front, hopping into the drivers side and started it up. I was out of the driveway before it was even seven o'clock.

I went over the plan again and again in my head, all the while knowing that all of it would be for nothing if I didn't first find any sort of trail leading me to the wolf.

The sky was a cloudless blue.

The sun was still just peaking over the horizon as I parked my truck by the road.

I knew I wasn't thinking rationally about any of this, but for some reason, I felt as if though that wolf was the cause of all my problems in the last few months. It was the reason why Paul left me, and it was the reason why he returned. It was the reason I met Ben and Angela, my good friends at school, and it was the reason why my father was now six feet under ground, so whatever sliver of rationally I had left in me was thrown away without a second thought. I _wanted_ to end this once and for all. End all of the problems that entered my life because of that filthy large mutt. Of course, it was all possible that the wolf had absolutely nothing to do with my fathers death, and that it really was a bear attack, but I was too angry to care.

I leaned my head on the steering wheel as I let out a stumbling breath, preparing myself for what was to come.

If Paul knew I was doing this, he would probably put steel bars on my windows and a padlock on the outside of my door so I could never leave my room to do something this idiotic ever again. For a second, I thought about what would happen if he did find out about this, and my thoughts quickly began to wander to what he would do if I didn't come back from this at all.

Would he be crushed to find out that some big wolf ate me alive? Of course, I had no doubt about that. But he would move on. Move on with his life, and possibly with whatever boy he seemed so infatuated with. My mother and sister would probably be the same. They would move on just like they currently were doing with my father. _Life goes on –_ as John Mellencamp would say.

The creaking of my door sounded as I gradually opened it. Flinging a green jacket around me, I grabbed my bag, then retreated to the back to retrieve my weapons of choice. The rifle had a strap, so I slung it around me, letting it hang on my back as I fastened the quiver over my shoulder. Last but no least, I grabbed the bow, feeling the smooth texture of it in my hands, and feeling a wave of emotions overcome me.

My father had made this bow for the first time he took me hunting. Every single pattern and curve in the wood told a story of just how much my father loved the tribe, as there were small symbols all over.

I went back around the truck, before facing the woods ahead. I looked left and right, checking on both sides of the road before taking my step into familiar territory.

The woods were as thick as I remembered, but I quickly managed to find a small trail that lead me deeper and deeper. It was quite a whiles before I spotted anything I even slightly recognized – the first thing being a tree with an unusual shape that I always seemed to remember. I knew that I was making progress towards my destination, but for some reason, it felt as thought when I was with my father, we would get there much quicker than what it was currently taking me.

I quickly facepalmed, remembering that I hadn't packed anything in case if I'd gotten lost, but I knew I was in too deep to turn back now.

About half an hour passed before I finally found it – the clearing that was the exact same as in the picture. The one where the deer once stood so beautifully. I searched the parameter, looking for any clues to lead me in the right direction. It only took a bit of straying outside the boundaries to luckily find a set of tracks that fit the description I was looking for. They didn't look too fresh, but it was definitely better than nothing.

As I began my tracking, I felt the slight sense of excitement overcome me, with just a hint of fear. Excitement for the fact that I was on the wolf's tracks, and fear for the same reason.

Would it try to attack me? Or would it hold off just like it did last time. I hoped the ladder, though I felt guilt as I thought about murdering the animal in cold blood when it wouldn't even fight back.

That's when the doubt began to settle in. I wasn't sure what I was doing was the right thing anymore. If it really _was_ peaceful, just like the time's I've seen it, then wouldn't it be shameful of me to kill such a creature?

That is, if I _can_ kill it.

I knew how big it was. And as I began seeing fresher and fresher sets of tracks, the big bad wolf that you would hear about in that children's tale suddenly didn't even compare to the monster that lurked in these woods, and I was currently little red, but I didn't have any stones. Instead, I had a gun, I had arrows, and if everything goes south, I had my legs.

For now, anyways…

The constant tweeting of birds seemed to get quieter and quieter, and I knew that I was getting close now. My leg were hurting, and I hadn't the clue of the time, but the sun was directly above me, so I knew considerable time had passed since I began the trek. It was when the last tweet sounded that I knew I had arrived.

It was deathly quiet, and I began searching; looking all around me, searching for _it_. I did not move my feet, as I didn't want to make a sound. My eyes were narrowed, and I was now searching in the far depths of where I could see, until finally a black fuzzy tale began wagging in the distance.

My hand had already begun reaching for an arrow. I knew I had a better chance at taking it down if it didn't instantly know where I was coming from, and unless I managed to hit a critical spot, the rifle would turn _me_ into the target.

My bow was now drawn, and I clutched tightly onto the arrow as I slowly but surely inched my way closer and closer to my target. The woods were thick though, so I was barely able to even see the behind of the wolf along with the tail that came from it.

My heart was now beating out of my chest – almost _so_ loud that I was frightened that the wolf would hear it. My breaths were extremely slow and steady, and the snow underneath me barely made a sound.

That's when I saw it.

A tail.

But it wasn't from the beast I was currently looking at.

I let lose of the string almost immediately, but I kept walking. Closer, and closer until I could see clearly the sight in front of me.

I was hidden behind a tree as I took it in. The black wolf wasn't alone, and next to it was a wolf with reddish-brown fur, and it was _just_ as big as the black one. I felt myself almost gasp, but I didn't dare to, as I knew I would probably be heard. For a second, the wolves looked to each other, and then they were on the move again. I couldn't even stop myself, as I began to silently trail behind.

They went downhill, but I didn't follow. Instead, I circled around to a long, flat rock that trailed out over the tiny hill where I would be able to over look them. I reached the rock, and I crouched down before lying on my stomach, and crawling out to the edge to observe the small clearing.

As I took in the sight before me, I felt my breath leave my body.

There wasn't two wolves. There were _six_ , and they were _all_ huge.

"Oh my god…" I whispered, not believing the sight in front of me.

It was simply unbelievable. There were no other words to describe it. My mind began racing, think of all the different things that this meant.

There were six wolves lurking in these woods, and they _were_ killing people. I knew I had to tell someone about this; there was no doubt in my mind. But even if I did, I know no one would believe me. Who would? _'Yes, officer, there are six bear-sized wolves lurking in the woods of La Push, and they are killing innocent people one by one.'_

Who in their right mind would believe that?

There had to be some way to communicate this without sounding like a complete lunatic, and when my hand clutched my bag, my eyes widened.

My _camera._

As silently as possible, my hand shot into my bag, rummaging around to find the item I desperately needed. My hand quickly recognized it, and I ripped it out. I quickly did repeated checks over and over to make sure everything was ready to capture this moment. I crept back out to the edge, camera in hand. My hands were shaking, but this only made me tighten my grip as I began lining up to get the perfect shot.

Three…

Two…

One…

The camera shuttered, and I ducked back down, tearing the camera down to my side, praying that they either didn't hear it, or wouldn't bother to check.

The silence made my ears almost hurt, but I couldn't hear any footsteps, so I took it as a sign I was in the clear.

The film was hanging from the slot before I even realised it, and I snatched it out, eyeing it closely. The shot came out perfectly, and I had never felt so happy in my life. I clutched onto the evidence for dear life, but I knew it would mean nothing if I myself didn't get out of there while I still could. I stuffed the camera in the bag, but I kept hold of the picture, as I didn't even want it leaving my sight. With my other hand, I snatched up my bow and began standing up to make my escape.

As I turned around, I truly felt as if my soul left my body, as no more than three inches from my face was a silver-furred wolf.

A sound so inhuman left my mouth, and out of instinct I began quickly staggering back out of shock, trying to get as much distance as possible between me and the beast, until finally, I backed no further, and as I stood at the very edge of the peak, the rock crumbled, and I began falling before I could realise what was happening.

The sound I made as I slammed into the ground definitely didn't sound good, but pain was next to no importance, for as I opened my eyes, I stared on into the wolf pack in front of me.

Every single head turned on me, and as I laid in that freezing snow, I couldn't help but think back to what had brought me here in the first place, and I knew that within moments, I would soon be joining him.

The only sound that lingered in the air was the last few bits of rubble that fell from the top.

I knew that this was my end, as I was now trapped, with absolutely no escape. I surprised myself though, as all my life, I thought that when I finally stared death in the face, I would accept it gracefully, and go out without a thought, but as my violently shaking hand reached out for the bow that was so close yet so far, the one thing I wasn't going to let happen was to go out without a fight.

The first movement I saw came from my _old time friend_ , the black wolf. It's front legs pushed back into an almost crouching position, as if it were about to charge.

About to charge at me.

I wasted no time as my hand picked up it's pace, seizing the bow almost instantly after I saw even the slightest bit of moment. My hand flicked behind me, grasping on to the first arrow that I could feel. It was running now, directly at me. The speed at which it ran was absurd, as if it had just launched itself from the barrel of a gun. It was like a blur, but that didn't stop me from drawing the bow back. It was in front of me before I could even comprehend it – on top of me, but I let the arrow fire. It missed, shooting straight up in the sky, but the wolf didn't stop. But instead of attacking me like I thought, it simply leaped over me, and that's when I heard an ear-deafening roar. My eyes shot back behind me, and the sight before me was something I did not expect.

The black wolf had it's teeth around the neck of a bear. One which had just emerged from the cave I was in front of.

The bear roared with pain, but the wolf did not stop it's attack. I felt myself trying to push myself back away from what was happening, my feet flaring frantically in front of me as I scooched backwards on my behind. That's when another attacked – this one had gray fur, and it moved with the same impeccable speed as the black wolf, it too then began attacking the bear.

I was shell shocked. Completely and utterly paralyzed, and I knew it. But I couldn't get myself to move, no matter how much I tried. I mentally screamed at myself, begging to run while I had the chance. When my head turned to see the other wolves staring at the scene in front of them, I listened to my own words, scoping back up the bow I had dropped, desperately turning myself around, and began kicking up snow as I began almost immediately breaking out into a full on sprint.

I didn't look back. If horror movies taught me anything, it's that you _never_ look back. Trees began whipping past me as I zig-zagged through them, not knowing where exactly I was headed, but the only thing I cared about was to get as far away from that place as possible. My breaths were shallower than I had ever felt, and I felt as the adrenaline began wearing down, but I didn't stop. I knew my life depended on me not stopping.

I began to see a clearing, and I ran faster than what I thought humanly possible. A road was a head of me, and as I broke away from the trees, I jumped the gap of the ditch and landed onto the pavement. I frantically looked around, trying my best to get my bearings. I quickly recognized it as the road I had to drive down earlier this morning to get to the entrance of the forest trail, and I turned, breaking into a full sprint again in the direction of where my truck was.

It was minutes before it came into sight, and when I finally got to it, I chucked everything in the back, not caring about gentleness, and almost ripping the door off it's hinges just to get inside. The rumbling of the engine as I turned the key in the ignition was a painful wait, and when it finally roared to life, I didn't hesitate to slam my foot down onto the gas. I was at the center of the town, and now driving in the direction of sanctuary. It wasn't long until my house came into view, and as I turned into my driveway, I felt the truck drift slightly.

I stayed still for a moment, before slowly shutting the ignition off, leaving only the sound of my erratic breaths. I leaned my head onto the wheel, trying to calm myself down, and trying to process what had just happened.

The black wolf just saved my life… _didn't it_? No… no it couldn't have. It obviously just had to chose between me and the bear as to what meal it would like best, and I luckily got the long end of the stick.

The picture crossed my mind, and my hand shot out for my bag, only to realise that I never put it in there to begin with, and instead I foolishly dropped it when that silver wolf snuck up on me.

"Shit!" I cursed, smashing my fist onto the wheel. Without that, I knew no one would believe me when I told them of what I saw.

Except…

I jumped out of the truck as quickly as I jumped in. I hurried to the front door before pushing myself through.

"Mom!" My voice came out louder than I wanted it to. "Mom!" I repeated, searching through the house, only to find her running to me from the kitchen.

"What? Seth what's wrong?" She seemed frightened.

"Mom, I saw them!"

"S-saw what? Honey I don't understand-"

"The bears mom! I saw them! The one's that's been killing off hikers. But like, they are _not_ bears. They're wolves- I mean they are like these _huge_ wolves!"

"Seth, just calm down. Walk me through this."

"I-I was out hunting and-"

"What were you doing out hunting alone?" My mother accused.

"That's not the point mom! I was hunting and I saw this wolf, so I followed it, but there wasn't just one. There were six- No, seven! There were seven bear-sized wolves, and they're insanely fast! They're the one's that's been killing people. The one's that gave dad a heart attack!"

"Seth…" My mother said softly.

"You don't believe me?" I sounded desperate.

"No, no, of course I believe you. It's just…"

"What, mom? What is it?"

She only looked away from me.

"You don't believe me." I said, feeling the disappointment that suddenly washed over me.

"Seth, no it's not that-"

"Whatever." I cut her off, turning onto my heels and fleeing up the stairs. When I got to my room, I slammed the door a little harder that I should have, but I had hoped that that just told her how upset I was.

I stayed in my room for the remainder of the day, sitting still on my bed and going over the events of that morning repeatedly until my brain started hurting. I was disappointed with my mom for not taking my word, as I knew she was the best chance I had to warning people, but I was also disappointed with myself.

I idiotically put myself at risk, and as I was able to think more clearly, I felt a wave of guilt as I realized just how selfish I had been. My mother and sister would've been crushed if I had died in that clearing today. Paul… well, I couldn't've imagined what Paul would have done.

My thoughts soon were answered, as there was a light tapping on my door, and before I got the chance to ask who it was, Paul came in through, closing it behind him. I'm guessing he noticed the strange look that seemed to be etched into my face, as he just sat back by the door, staring at me with some expression I couldn't fathom.

"Hey, lil' pup." His voice sounded weird. I simply nodded in acknowledgement.

"Is… there something wrong?" He asked me, but his faced looked as if he didn't want me to answer. I didn't really think of an answer, as I let the first thing that came to mind come out.

"I almost died today."

He flinched.

"W-what?" He laughed, but I could tell it was one with no humor.

"It's… a long story."

He stayed silent, before slowly walking over to my bed. "I think I can keep up." He spoke, his tone gentle as he sat close to me.

I sighed.

"God, where do I even begin." I dryly chuckled into my hands.

"Well… just start from the beginning, Seth."

"The beginning." I repeated.

And so, I turned to him, looking into his warm chocolate-colored eyes, and started from the beginning.

* * *

AN: Oh wow, two chapters within a week! It's almost like I felt guilty for not updating for so long...

This chapter has been a chapter that I've been waiting to do ever since I even began to think about this story - it was the first one I had a concrete idea with actually. It was just so much fun to write, and once I started, I honestly couldn't stop.

I really hope you enjoyed it! And thank you so much for reading! ! !


	8. Your Friendly Neighborhood Spider-man

_**Your Friendly Neighborhood Spider-man**_

* * *

"Wow." Paul breathed.

"Yeah." I had no other words to say. The things I told him worried me for the fact that he might think I was a psychopath. I told him everything, from the day I almost hit the wolf with my truck, to just what happened this morning. Of course, there was one minor detail I left out, and that was the fact that for a second I thought that Sam could possibly be…

I couldn't even think it, for it just sounded too crazy.

"You've been busy." He chuckled, though in his eyes, I saw how he truly felt about what I've done. The confusion as to why I would ever put myself at such a risk, and the disappointment that followed behind. It pained me to see it, as the guilt just seemed to build up the more I stared, knowing that the boy who sat next to me really would've been broken if he had found out that I died today in that woods.

"I'm… I'm sorry. I know it was completely and utterly idiotic to do something like that, I just…"

"You just thought that if you killed it, you would have avenged you're father." His saddened smile gazed down onto me, and I could only sigh in response.

"Seth, I really was telling the truth when I said that it was a bear that did it – that gave him the heart attack. The chief of police saw it himself." His words were truthful, as he rubbed slow circles on my back.

"…Okay." I felt defeated. "I believe you." I really did, because I knew one thing for certain. Paul would never lie to me. Maybe get other people to do it for him, but I knew he couldn't handle saying it to my face.

"So this mean's that you'll stop trailing that wolf?" He asked. He could only sound hopeful as he said it, with good reason to. I sat still for a moment; really thinking over what accepting those words meant. I knew I could accept them.

"Yes." Was the only thing that came out.

"Good." He let out another breath, and I could almost visibly see the relief he felt when hearing my words. He let his body fall back onto the bed; body spread out completely relaxed. I followed, feeling as my head landed on the crease of his arm.

"So, does this mean no more zombie Seth?" He questioned, turning his head to me. I felt a slight sting, as the guilt that seemed to faded shot right back up again.

"Yeah." I mumbled with embarrassment. "I'm really sorry about that." He moved his forearm up, and I felt my head rolled onto his bicep. The tips of his fingers mindlessly began to play with my hair as if to soothe me from the pain.

"You keep apologizing for things that aren't you're fault." He murmured.

"But it was my fault." My voice shook slightly. How could he say it wasn't? I abandoned my family to recede into a cocoon like state, completely unable to take care of myself or the ones who had needed me most. It was the most selfish thing I had ever done.

"You're wrong." He whispered. "Everyone deals with things differently. You just needed time to recover." I felt a smile creep up onto my lips. I turned my head up to look at him.

"Thank you for taking care of me, by the way. You're amazing, you know that?" I questioned.

"Oh, I know." He pretended as if my words hadn't even phased him.

"Cocky." I playfully slapped his chest, which made him nudge his whole body into mine, while huffing out a laugh that was truly music to my ears.

Time didn't seem to exist as we laid still, not moving an inch. Feeling Paul this close really set something ablaze inside of me. I knew though that this meant something different to him. I wished that he felt it the way that I did, but I knew that such chances were slim, even as I knew the fact of his attraction to men. Something I had never expected, but I'm glad, because even _if_ they were slim, I still couldn't feel myself able to give up fighting to be with the boy next to me.

I glanced back up at him, and as I saw his closed eyelids, all I could do was admire the face that I've known all my life. Such perfection seemed almost impossible to be able to exist, but Paul did it so effortlessly.

I could tell he'd fallen asleep, as the steady rise and fall of his chest easily gave it away. I sat up, putting my hand onto his chest, shaking it back and forth in an attempt to wake him. He stirred, his eyes peaking open as he barely managed to mumble a 'Hmm?'

"You need to lie down properly." My voice was gentle. He complied sluggishly, and I helped him lay in a more comfortable position – emphasis on _help_ , as I could barely move his heavy body.

As he flopped back onto the pillow, he was out like a light. I could barely manage to muffle the laugh that tried to escape me as I reached over to switch off the lamp by my bed. I got close next to him before hauling the blankets over us. My head was back to resting on his bicep, but it wasn't enough, so I turned my whole body to lean into him, wrapping an arm around his stomach. The heat that I felt by doing this was ridiculous, but it strangely felt more comforting than ever. I wondered if my guilt would ever ease, as I knew that what I was doing was probably crossing a limit. Such a position would be completely okay if I saw him as _friend_ , but I didn't.

 _Right now, I saw him as the boy I was in love with._

The morning sun peaked in through the faded curtains, though it did not bother me like it usually would. It was the first morning in a while in which I had felt completely rested.

I looked to my side, only to see the spot that was once filled now empty, and in it's place was a white slip of paper. My brow furrowed as I propped myself up, reaching out with my free arm to grab the note.

 _Sorry, had to go run some errands. Meet you later this evening? – Your friendly neighborhood Spider-man_

I couldn't help the heartfelt laugh that left me as I read it.

"Paul Lahote, you are truly absurd."

I trotted down the stairs with a bright smile. Walking into the kitchen, I noticed my mother sitting at the table, paper in hand.

"Morning!" I said cheerfully.

This caught her off guard.

"Morning, hun. What's got you in a cheery mood?" She asked, clearly surprised. This was probably the first time she'd seen me smile in a month.

"Nothing in particular." I hummed, opening the fridge to take out the jug of orange juice. I reached into the cupboard, taking out a big glass and filling it to the brim.

"Thirsty?" She smiled.

She was probably relieved that I was in a good mood, so I didn't want to dampen it by saying that I had completely forgotten to drink or eat anything at all yesterday. I wanted her to know I was taking care of myself again. I knew how much she worried, and she already had enough stress as is.

After my father's passing, my mother took over his role on the Quileute council . But the thing is, she also kept her old job as a store clerk, so now on the _on_ days, she would be off to the council , and the _off_ days working behind a register. I could tell it was taking it's toll on her, and I wished that there was something I could do to help out – anything to help take any pressure off of her.

And that's when I thought of an idea.

I was seventeen. I was able to work at a job – at least part time. Maybe this is what I could do to pay her back for everything she's done for me, and also like an apology for literally abandoning her for a whole month.

"Hey mom," I asked, sitting down in the chair next to her. Her eyes shifted up to me; her gaze peaking out just above her reading glasses.

"Yes?"

"Why don't I take over you're job down at the convenience store – part time at least?"

"Oh honey," She put her hand out on top of mine. "There's no need for that. I'm doing quite fine as is, so you really don't have to worry."

"Mom, I _want_ to help out. I… know things haven't been easy ever since…" My voice died down. "Just let me help out, _please."_

"Seth, I really don't know-"

"Mom, I _want_ to do this."

She seemed caught off guard by my determination, and she guiltily looked away, looking like she was going over things in her head. She turned back to me with what looked to be her moment of weakness.

"You really want to?" She asked.

"Yes." Was all I said. She sighed at this.

"Well when would you want to start – today?" She questioned, wincing at the thought as she probably would think it was too soon, but I could tell that if I did, she would be grateful for the day off.

"Sure!" I put more excitement then needed into my voice. She tried to cover the smile of relief that reached her lips.

"Okay, I'll call Janet to see if it's okay." She stood from her seat, walking over to the phone to make the call. Janet was the store's owner. She was a very kind woman who was around my mother's age, and I did on the occasion see her from time to time.

As my mother began talking, I thought to how I was slightly proud of myself. I was being spontaneous – something very out of character for me – which made me feel excited. Moments passed as my mother talked, which by the sound of it, was going pretty good.

"Yes, yes, okay. Thank you so much, Janet. I really appreciate this. See you." My mother then hung up the phone before turning to me. "She said she would love to have you on board, though if you want to start today, you're going to have to go in within the hour for at least a bit of training."

She didn't have to speak any further. I ran up to my room to grab my keys before heading back down stairs for my coat.

"Leaving already?" She asked me, surprised again.

"Yeah! I want to make sure I don't make an utter fool of myself before starting my first day at work." I gave her a brilliant smile, which only made her walk up to pull me into an embrace.

"Thank you." She spoke, her voice gentle.

"Of course." I replied, wrapping my arms around her.

We stayed like that for a few moments before she let me go. I said my farewells as I left the house.

The sun was bright in the sky as I drove on the main road through the town. I felt a bit anxious knowing that I was about to try something completely new, and quite possibly make a fool of myself while doing it, but it was nowhere near as bad as I thought it would be. In fact, I felt a tad excited as I pulled into the small parking spaces in front of the store. I stepped out of the truck, closing it behind me before taking a deep breath. I hopped onto the sidewalk, quickly hurrying to the doors. I hauled on the handle, holding the door open for a person who was just leaving. They politely thanked me, which I gave a smile before entering.

"Ah, Seth!" Someone called to me. My gaze turned to land on the front counter, where I recognized Janet, who was standing behind it with a welcoming smile.

"Hi!" I said, walking up to her.

"How've you been?" She asked, though I could tell it wasn't in general, as she gave me the obvious sympathetic head-tilt.

"I've been fine, thanks for asking." I didn't let the indirect mention of my father ruin the mood.

"Good, good!" She spoke. "So I hear you want to help out you're mom?" She asked, eyeing me knowingly.

"Yes." I gave my most convincing grin.

"Excellent! Well we still have about an hour until you're mother's shift would usually start, so lets go over all the things while we have the time."

In that hour, she taught me the most basic things, such as where the most popular items were located in case a customer asked, and making sure to ask and check for ID when someone tries to buy any tobacco or alcohol (This was particularly strange, as I would've thought that minors weren't allowed to distribute such things, but she assured me it was okay.) The hardest thing was getting use to the cash register, so most of the time was used for that. By the end of it I felt pretty confident, though I couldn't help the feeling that I was going to mess up majorly.

"Now, I guess it's time for me to leave you to it then." Janet spoke, looking pleased by the progress we made. "And don't worry about being overrun by customers, Sundays are usually our most slowest." She gave a reassuring smile, which helped calm my nerves.

To my surprise, things went quite well. My first hour was slightly dysfunctional. I kept apologizing to customers as I tried my hardest to keep up with everything – my biggest problem was getting the register to open just as swiftly as Janet had been doing it when teaching, but I soon got the hang of it. The hours seemed to fly by faster than I'd had thought possible, which I quickly learned that I was actually quite enjoying myself. The radio on the shelf next to me was playing songs that I knew well, and I hummed along with them when I was alone. This too surprised me, as Janet really wasn't kidding when she said that Sundays were their slowest days, as for the most part, I would've guess that within four hours, there were only twenty customers.

I was fiddling with the necklace I wore (the one Paul gave to me back in March) when another customer came strolling in through the doors. When I looked up though, I only got a peak at the back of their head as they straight away went to the fridges in the back of the store. It was when I was analyzing the wooden bear on the necklace that a familiar voice spoke up.

"Oh, hello Seth."

I looked up, and to my shock, it was Paul's father.

"Hello, Chris." I said, surprised to see the man.

"Long time, no see, yeah?"

I smiled. "Yeah, it has."

"When did you start working here?" He questioned.

"Today's actually my first day. I'm taking over some of my mom's shifts since she took over my father's job on the Council."

"Oh, voluntarily?"

"Yeah! I knew that she's been having trouble keeping up with both jobs, so it was only fair that I help out."

"Well that's very kind of you." He said frankly, which I politely thanked him. I then looked down to the items he had on the counter, which was about three packs of steaks.

"Oh, are you having a barbeque with a few people?"

"No…" He looked away, chuckling slightly. I quickly realised my mistake.

"Oh god… _he's_ going to eat all of _that_?"

This seemed to make him laugh. "The boy's got an appetite, that's for sure."

"No doubt about that." I laughed.

"Gonna be a late barbeque though. Got called into work, so it looks like his stomach is going to have to hold off for a few hours." He sighed.

The sudden urge to help the man out hit me, which made me began questioning where all this generosity was coming from – not that I was complaining. It felt nice to do.

"Hey well, I'm suppose to be seeing him later anyways. Do you want me to do it?"

"Oh Seth, you don't need to be bothering yourself with this." He tried dismissing me.

"Chris really, I don't mind." I gave him a more serious look. He seemed to contemplate my offer for a moment before giving me a smile.

"Well that would really be helpful. Thank you, Seth."

I beeped the steaks for him, which he then paid for by credit card; making me feel slight relief as I wouldn't have to fiddle with the register.

He thanked me again as I bagged the things, and then told me that he would leave them in the fridge before taking his leave.

I felt somewhat excited for the visit, as I couldn't remember the last time I had been in Paul's house. The rest of the shift seemed to go by slowly, and I felt my excitement spike as Janet entered the store again, which meant that it was ending.

"How was it?" She asked.

"It was actually pretty good!" I replied honestly, which seemed to be the answer she wanted to hear.

We went over a few things, such as what weekday shifts I would be taking over for my mother, and after that I was free to leave.

I roared the truck's engine to life, before swiftly pulling out of the lot. I knew my mother would want to hear how it went, so I went home for a quick second, which would also give me time to change into warmer clothes, as the day was getting cooler.

As I stepped into the house, I saw my mother's head peak out through the kitchen doorway.

"You're back! How did It go?" She asked, eager to know.

"Really well! I think I'm going to enjoy it there."

"Oh, that's so good to hear." She seemed relieved. "And don't worry, you won't be working for nothing." I looked up in question, only to realise what she was saying.

"Oh, no mom. That's fine, really." I didn't need the money, and I knew that she needed it to pay the bills.

"Seth, the council has already raised my salary anyways. I _know_ you're worried about the bills, so don't be. We'll manage just fine."

I wanted to put up an argument, but I could already tell that I wasn't going to win it. I only sighed before heading upstairs to change. As I returned, I called out to my mom, telling her I would be back later, and then was back out the door again.

As I pulled into Paul's driveway, I parked the truck and jumped out, practically skipping up to the door. It was unlocked – I'm guessing by Chris – so I didn't have to use the extra key that they kept hidden under a rock by the door.

I stepped inside, feeling as if I was entering uncharted territory. There was no sound in the home, so I assumed that Paul hadn't returned just yet.

It really had been a long time since I had last visited, but everything looked the exact same as it always had. To the left was the living room, where their very expensive looking plasma tv was. In front of me was the kitchen, which was only separated from the living room by a half-cut wall. I wasted no time as I made my way in, making a b-line straight to the fridge where Chris said the steaks would be.

I pulled them out, before searching through the cupboards for some pans. When I found them, I put them on the stove and turned on the dials before plopping down the steaks. As I waited for them to cook, I decided to explore the house. I walked around the downstairs area, which one thing that caught my eye was the large bookshelf they had, which seemed to be filled with books on Quileute history. I paused, thinking back to the old tales that I'd once read, and shaking my head at the silliness of it all. I retreated back to the kitchen, flipping the steaks once, and then went back to exploring.

The next thing I explored was the upstairs, and more specifically, Paul's room. When I opened the door, I couldn't help but feel the nostalgia that seemed to hit me. I remember being in this room a lot as a kid. Usually after primary school, I would come over on bus everyday with Paul, as my parents both always had work, and considered Leah old enough to stay home alone, but not old enough to be able to look after me. I made my way over to the bed, which was unsurprisingly unmade. I sat down, looking around at everything, and reliving all the moments the two of us had in here as kids.

The room smelled like fresh leaves and moss – the way Paul smelled. It was relaxing. I stood up again, and made my way over to the rusted desk which held many things on top of it, ranging from school textbooks to dirty pairs of socks. One of the things that caught my eye was a journal-like book laying on top of all the mess. With questioning curiosity, I opened it.

The first page had many scribbled out sentences on it, though not completely unreadable. I made my way back down to the kitchen with the book in hand. I simultaneously began flipping the steaks while reading.

 _-I don't know what to-  
_ _-I cant understand anything that's ha-  
_ _-Today was-  
_ _Sam thinks I should keep a journal on what has happened._ _I don't know where to begin. I guess I'll write whatever comes to mind? Like I'm taking to myself? That seems kind of crazy, but nothing about this week has been anything remotely sane._

My eyes narrowed at the page. I began to question what he meant, and I questioned whether turning the page to read more was an invasion of privacy, but I knew that if I kept reading, it could give me the answers to what had been going on between Sam and Paul. With a guilty conscious, I continued.

 _My body feels… incredible. Like I could take on a whole army. It scares me though. Because after changing back, the fatigue can be overwhelming. I like it though. It feels… addicting in a way.  
I still can't control it. Sam say's I'll get better in time. I hope so. It's making me feel angry every second. I can't remember the last time I really felt happy. Hell, even writing this, it's taking everything in me to not shatter this pen to pieces. Last night my father asked me to not leave dirty dishes in the sink, and I had to leave the house just to scream and punch trees in order to calm down._

I felt extremely anxious. By the sounds of it, it sounded like Paul is taking something. Drugs maybe? Steroids? Was that the reason he had put on twenty pounds in a month? He wrote everything with such vagueness. He wasn't mentioning the topic directly, as if he were ashamed of it or something, which only father made me think that my guessing was correct.

I skipped ahead a little in the journal.

 _Today we were chasing it. It was the first time I'd seen it, and Jared was right about how disgusting it smelled. We chased it through the woods. It was just as fast as – if not quicker than – us. I really thought we could've caught it too if he hadn't' have showed up. What the hell was he doing so far in the woods anyway? And he came so close to it. When I got home I had practically gagged into my toilet from how bad my nerves had been after seeing that._

Everything was still so vague. I tried my best to decrypt it, but nothing made any sense. What were they chasing? Who was _he?_

The steaks looked about done, so I flipped the stove off and took out a few plates to put them on, before wrapping them up in tinfoil and putting them in the oven.

I began flipping pages again, only to stop when I caught sight of my name.

 _I imprinted. At least, that's what Sam thinks. He's asking the council if it's possible. I don't know what to feel. My instincts are telling me to be happy, but everything just feels so scary, and when I get scared, I get angry.  
_ _If Seth knew, I bet he would be angry. Probably punch me in the face, call me a faggot or whatever, then never speak to me again. I hope he doesn't hate me after this._

I felt myself become choked up. What was this 'imprint' thing he talked about, and did it somehow help him realise he liked guys? And did he really think I would hate him after finding out? I turned the pages again, trying to find more entries on my name.

 _Tonight was weird. In the best way possible. Me and Seth are friends again, and it makes me happy. I'm happy. I was starting to think that this emotion completely disappeared. It feels so good. It feels so natural to be around him. He stopped me from being angry. Something even Sam couldn't get me to do. As I had that filthy excuse of a man's neck in my hands, I really thought that I was going to phase, but Seth stopped me, and I couldn't have been more grateful. I was about to reveal the tribe's secrets. Century long secrets. But Seth stopped me. He saved me._

I was at a loss for words. I had helped him keep the 'secrets' of our tribe? What secrets?

I flipped the pages once more, but something slipped out and fell to the floor. I stared down, looking at the tiny white piece of paper. It almost seemed to resemble a photo. I steady hands slowly reached down, peeling the paper off the ground. I stood back up, and flipped it around.

As I stared down at the paper in my fingers, I felt nothing. No words, no emotions, no thoughts. Nothing.

It _was_ a photo. One that had snow in it. Snow and trees, the two major things. But there was more than just snow and trees. There was fur, there was paws, there was tails, and there was animal like bodies the size of _bears_. _  
_


	9. Driftwood

_**Driftwood**_

* * *

I had never given any thought to how this day was going to go, but out of all the ways I could have pictured, this was surely not one of them.

The paper in my hand – the photo – felt heavy, as if it had suddenly began weighing a hundred pounds. My breathing was shallower than before, and my eyes were frantically eyeing every detail over, just to make sure that what I was seeing was correct, and not some hallucination that my mind was showing me.

"What is this?" my voice somehow sounded disconnected.

In my hands was the photo that I had taken yesterday. The picture evidence of the existence of that bear-like wolf pack. The picture that I was hoping to show police, or animal control, or who ever the hell could take them out. Why was I looking at this? How could this possibly now be in my hands when I knew I had dropped it, and why did it just slip out of the mysterious journal that belonged to my best friend.

The gentle sound of the wind chimes out side the back door felt as if it were moving further and further away as my rapid beating heart seemed to get louder and louder; the pounding overriding my ears to the point where it felt as if it were a bomb ticking, counting down until the grand finale of exploding.

I kept repeatedly asking myself how it was even possible; my mind feeling though it had entered a stupor, and within seconds I would pass out from pure confusion alone.

My theory on the wolves being connected to the tribe's legends and Sam Uley all seemed to just seem even crazier than they had already sounded. It was so crazy, and not at all possible.

 _But what if it was._

My hands were now gripping the sides of the counter for dear life; my uneven breath becoming worse. I knew that hyperventilation was happening, so I put my head into my violently shaking arms as I tried my best to steady my breathing.

There had to be some explanation – _something_ to make this sound even slightly possible.

My eyes darted up to the journal, and my hand fiercely shot out for it. With the book in hand again, I felt myself crumble down to the floor, my back to the cupboard. I flicked the pages, again and again, searching for anything that could make any sense of this.

I stopped on the last entry of the journal. It was from today.

 _Yesterday was the most frightening day of my life. I don't even want to write about it. I don't want to remember it.  
Seth had told me about everything he's been doing. He told me about 'The black wolf' as he calls him. He thought that it had killed his father. What could I even say to that? He didn't believe what I had told him a month ago, but it wasn't like I could change what I had said, and I knew that if I didn't convince him that my lie was true, I knew he would probably just end up hurting himself. I even had to ask him to not go chasing after the pack.  
I knew that if it was Sam's decision, he probably would have told me to let Seth think that he killed Harry. It was the less complicated route, so Seth could just think Sam was just a regular wolf, rather than something more._

My breaths had calmed slightly, but it was still uneven as the steady stream of tears poured down my face as I felt this all becoming realer than I'd wanted it to be. I got the gist of it all quickly.

Sam really was the wolf. That was a plain fact, which honestly, didn't leave me feeling all that surprised. _Strange_ , though I guess I had always felt there was something supernatural going on with _it_. What I didn't understand though was why he was… doing what he does, and why he killed my...

From what I had read, the tribe's legends told nothing about a situation such as this.

But honestly, it seemed that it wasn't even the part that bothered me the most.

Paul was lying to me. He was lying about what happened to my father, to keep Sam _safe_. There was no bear attack. The big question was simply _why_. Why _would_ he lie about this? Did he think of Sam as his closest friend now, so that was why he was turning a blind eye to him and all the things he was doing? Was killing my father not enough to leave him questioning his morals?

I was now standing. My eyes were on the journal in front of me, as if it were some poisonous object. I was no longer crying, and my face was completely blank. I felt no more emotion – just coldness.

Emptiness.

The sound of laughing met my ears, and I heard the front door of the house open, but I didn't turn around to look, as I already knew who had arrived.

"Hey dad, you home?" The voice called out, all the while mindless chatter sounded from behind him. "Emily's up in Neah Bay visiting family, so is it okay if the guys eat…" His voice had trailed off.

"Seth?" he asked simply. The other voices seemed to silence themselves as they noticed my presence, and there was a moment of stillness.

The calm before the storm.

I didn't know what to say – what could I after learning about everything that he's been keeping a secret from me. My gaze stayed on both the journal and picture which were hidden in front of me.

"How are those errands going, Paul?" I asked, my voice still sounding so detached. I turned my body, angling it so I could get a better look at him and the others. The first thing that caught my attention was Leah. She was standing off to the side of their little group, and my eyes narrowed just a fraction.

"Wh… What are you doing here?" Paul asked, clearly noticing how strange I was acting.

"Your father asked me to make you this." I opened the oven door, grabbing the warm plate and simply tossing it over to him. He caught it of course – that was something I'd expect after years of playing football, but it didn't stop the immediate shock from my hasty actions. "And, while I was making that, I got to take a look at this." I now picked up the picture, balling it up and tossing it over to him just as carelessly as I did with the plate, which he then caught with his other hand.

It took him a second to look at the picture, before going wide eyed and rapidly looking back up to me. I only turned away, looking back down at the journal.

"Seth… it's not what it looks like." He sounded scared, which only made me laugh humorlessly.

"Really…" I said with mock disbelief. "Because what it looks like is that you've been lying to me for weeks now. And given the bear attacks that've been happening all over town…" My hand picked up the journal, which I then began tracing over the rough patterns on it with my fingers. "I bet that's not the only thing you've been keeping from me." I glanced back at him, only to now see the faces of the others, who all seemed just as shocked as Paul. Sam, Jared, Embry, Quil, Jacob, and even Leah.

It had seemed that Sam's cult has gotten bigger.

Paul awkwardly laughed, taking quick glances at the people around him. "Well then I guess it's kind of what it looks like… _But_ I can explain." He sounded desperate. "Look, it's going to sound crazy."

"Try me." I challenged, tossing the book back onto the counter before turning my full attention to the boy.

He looked to Sam. They seemed to have some mental conversation before Sam simply nodded.

"Okay well…" He turned back to me. "D-did you read the last thing I wrote in _that_?" He indicated to the journal.

I nodded.

"Okay okay." He breathed. "Well… yes. It's true."

I felt myself let out a shaky breath. I was about to speak, but he beat me to it.

"But that's not all." His voice went faint, and I gave him a questioning look. "It's not just Sam that can… do what he does… We all can." His arms gestured to the people around him.

My stare remained on him. It took me seconds to process the words that he spoke, before my eyes switched over to Sam.

They… _all_ can?

My eyes then shifted to Leah. I tried saying anything, but I couldn't, so I settled for shaking my head while mentally asking her if it were all true.

"I'm sorry." Was all she said.

My eyes went wide as her words hit me like a tidal wave, and I immediately found myself stiffly stepping backwards.

Paul started to walk towards me in a slow and cautious manner. "You see, we can all change into these wolves and-"

"I need you to just-" Trying to put even more space between me and the boy. My hip hit the counter, and all I could do was to lean on it with one hand as my brain tried to process everything that was happening.

He began to start rambling, the nervousness and intensity of the whole situation written clearly on his face. "I-I know it sounds scary, and you have every right to be frightened right now, but this is who we are. We're… werewolves. We were born with this gene that gives this to us, and we phase into them when we need to protect-"

"Okay, just stop." I said, exasperated. I raised my hand, as to act as a warning and a guard as I asked him the only question that I needed to know. The only question that would confirm which of the two things that I would see him as.

"Was there… or was there not… a bear?" I felt my face scrunch up as I tried to hold back the emotion that threated to escape.

"I-" he started, but it was all he could say, as he seemed to be at a loss for words.

That was all I needed to hear. I no longer wanted to see him as my friend. I wanted to only see him at the boy who played a part in the homicide of my father.

My hand was gripping onto the necklace that hung around my neck; holding so tightly onto the bear charm as I contemplated ripping it off and flicking it away. But I couldn't do it. I loved the person who gave it to me too much to do such a thing.

"Okay." I felt myself let out a laugh before I started moving, walking past Paul and straight to the door.

"Seth, wait!" He called out, but I only kept moving.

"Seth-" He gripped my arm. I reacted almost immediately, ripping my arm away from his grasp.

"Don't touch me." I hissed out.

"I didn't want to lie to you!" He tried to reason with me.

I only scoffed at this.

"I _didn't_ , but what else could I have said!"

"The truth _maybe_?"

"I just wanted to protect you."

This made me let out another cold laugh. "Oh, that is so _bullshit_ , Paul. You just didn't have the guts to face me – _AGAIN_."

"Because I knew that you were going to react like this!"

I felt myself step back in disbelief. "Are you _actually_ saying these words?" I asked in amazement. "Tell me, how would _you_ react in this situation?"

"I just… I-"

"Spit it out!" I shouted.

"I just don't know what's going on." He sounded like he was on the edge, as he gripped the sides of his head as he let out a shiver.

"Well let me paint you a picture, Paul. First," I flipped up a finger. "you get your father to lie for you for weeks, all the while avoiding me as best as you could. Second, when I _finally_ can speak to you, you tell me to get the hell out of your life and leave me questioning as to what horrible thing I could have possibly done to you for a _whole month_. Third, you come running back, _begging_ for my forgiveness and promising to _never_ do _this_ again, and forth," I let out a breath. "You lied to me during my most vulnerable moment, even when you knew that I needed the truth."

Paul still didn't meet my gaze, though in a way I was glad, as I was now crying again.

"And now… you're a _werewolf_." I mocked the words.

"I'm sorry…" He whimpered out.

"Are you, Paul? Because from the looks of it, you really aren't. So, if you are done lying to me, then you need to _stop_ _lying_ to _yourself_."

The room was quiet, and I could tell our little audience's eyes bore into the two of us, but I felt too tired to care. He didn't seem to want to speak anymore, so I did.

"I gotta get going." I mumbled, pointing a thumb back to the door behind me while trying to wipe away my tear stained face with my other hand. "You keep doing your thing, Paul. Just…" I sighed. "Just leave me out of it."

Without another word, I turned around and opened the door, hearing Paul's faint voice call my name, but my hand simply slipped onto the outside handle and closed it behind me.

The seatbelt felt suffocating as I clicked it around my body. The rumble of the engine sounded, and I backed my way out of the driveway, not once looking back. I had blanked out the whole drive back home, which gave me a surprise as I had been staring at the front of my house before I realised it.

I couldn't hold back the choke that left my throat, and all too quickly I began to sob into the wheel. Crying over my father. Crying over how much my life had gone down hill in the last few months. Crying over Paul. The thought of that last one made me strike my dashboard with my fist as I let out another sob that was filled with so much sadness and so much anger. I remained there for a good hour, and by then, all the tears had dried up and I was no longer able to let anymore out, so I settled for just mindlessly staring out the windshield.

 _Paul is a werewolf. He's… a werewolf. Paul is…_ No matter how many times I repeated it in my head, the words just seemed to get more and more bizarre each time, but I knew they were true. They were so undeniably true that it made me feel sick.

Everything up till now seemed to finally make sense. All the sleepless nights wondering why Paul had left me. All the long days I would question what was going on in La Push. Everything seemed to finally fit, and the imaginary puzzle was complete.

I still didn't understand it though. The tribe's legends… weren't they all suppose to be protecting us somehow? Not the opposite. _Unless_ , they were like the werewolves in fiction. Full moons and flesh eating…

I felt myself shiver at the thought.

Where would I go from here? I couldn't possibly speak to Paul anymore knowing he did… what he does. And Leah… My own sister was a werewolf. Did she also eat people?

 _Did she know about Sam killing dad?_

The questions from the missing information was painfully confusing, and I began to rhythmically hit my head onto the wheel in hopes of getting it all to just fall out of my head – or knock myself out.

I noticed a figure walk around the side of the truck, but I didn't bother to check who. There was sound of the passenger side door opening, only to close again. Moments passed, and I could tell it was Leah by the fact that she would be the only one who wouldn't mind the silence that lingered in the air. I knew I probably should've felt scared by the fact that a werewolf was in my truck, but I really couldn't get my mind around seeing anything but my own sister.

"Did I ever tell you about why Sam left me?" I heard her voice speak up.

I merely shook my head, not wanting to look at her. Maybe I was too scared to.

"Well, he actually didn't break up with me. I broke up with him."

My closed eyes peaked open, but I still didn't turn.

"You see, when Sam proposed to me last summer, it was out of guilt, though I didn't know that at the time."

 _Guilt? What would he have felt guilt for?_ I thought to myself.

"At first, I was so unbelievably happy. My boyfriend of three years had just asked me to marry him." She then sighed. "So happy that I didn't think to realise just how close Sam and Emily got." I could hear how choked up her voice was becoming. "Seth, do you know what _imprinting_ is?" She asked me.

"N-not really." I mumbled.

She let out a shaky breath. "Imprinting is like… when you first look at them – look right into their eyes – you know they're the one. And then suddenly, it's no longer your own two feet that are keeping you on the ground, but instead, it's them. Like if your whole world shifted from under you."

"So, love at first sight?" I said, thinking back to the conversation I had with Paul that day.

"No. No, it's so much stronger than that. It's just…" I heard her voice falter slightly. "It's like a bond that can never be broken, _no matter what_. It's something that… us wolves can do."

I flinched at the last part, and she then went silent again. I questioned if she was going to continue her story, and as seconds passed, it hit me.

 _So happy that I didn't think to realise just how close Sam and Emily got._

"Sam imprinted on Emily?" I asked, though I felt as if I already knew the answer.

"Yeah." She whispered. "I began seeing it – how he reacted around Emily, and then how he reacted around me. It made me feel so… insecure for the longest time, as if I just wasn't good enough – I didn't know about the imprint at the time." She added. "So… I realised that he was in love with her and…" She trailed off.

"You broke up with him."

"Yeah." She sighed again, and then we went silent.

I contemplated asking _the_ question, as I feared what answer she would give me, but I managed to put on a brave composure and turned to her.

"Do you… know…?" I asked, hoping she would pick up what I meant. She tilted her head to the side, questioning what I meant.

"Do you know…" I began again. "About Sam… killing… D-" My voice cut off, and I felt myself begin to choke up.

"Killing what?" She asked me, looking confused as to what I was trying to say.

"Dad…" My voice was barely audible. "About Sam killing dad."

She stared at me for a moment, the confused face then turning humorous.

"You think that _Sam Uley_ killed our father." She asked with disbelief.

"Yes?"

"Oh Seth." She shook her head. "You are so stupidly ignorant, you know that?"

I gave her a hard stare. "What's that suppose to mean?"

"Of course Sam didn't kill dad, you dingus. Why would you even think that?"

"W-well because Paul said he had a heart attack from a bear! And I know damn well bears wouldn't be out of hibernation in March, so it was completely obvious that the only other explanation was-"

"The wolves." Leah cut me off, groaning into her hands. "Paul is such an idiot sometimes. I swear that temperamental ass probably has a brain the size of a peanut." Her voice came out muffled.

"S-so Sam didn't?"

"No, Sam definitely didn't."

"Then what did?"

"I don't think I'm allowed to tell you that right now." She seemed apologetic.

"Does it have something to do with… werewolves?" I asked.

She nodded.

"Okay." I could accept that for now, so long as I eventually found out what did.

"I have another question." I said, feeling slightly braver than I did when we first started this conversation while I thought back to all the "Bear attacks" that seemed to be happening.

"Fire away."

"Are… are you guys killing people?"

She didn't speak, which made me began fearing the worst. I waited and waited, until finally, I couldn't wait any longer, and as I turned to her, I couldn't help but feel shocked. She had a hand over her mouth, trying her hardest to muffle the laugher that escaped from her, but ultimately failing.

"No," She said in between laughs. "No, we're not killing people."

I knew I should have felt relief, but my curiosity wouldn't allow it. "Then what is?"

Her laughter began dying down into a hum, and she wiped away a tear from her eye before turning to me. "Still can't say."

"Oh, come on!" I nearly shouted. "I already know about you guys being werewolves, what else could there possibly be?"

"More than you know, little bro." And on that note, she opened her door, hopping out and started making her way to the house.

I remained there for a moment. _More that I'll ever know… What does that even mean?_ I jumped out and quickly followed behind.

The remainder of the day was spent idly walking around my home, questioning my own sanity as I wondered what was and wasn't real about the things that had happened today. It was in the late night – around twelve – when my mother came into my room to tell me she was heading to bed. I told her goodnight, but she stayed lingering in my doorway.

"I got off the phone with the council just now. They said that they want to speak with you early in the morning if that's alright."

"Speak to me about what?"

She paused, eyeing me with what I wondered was worry, but was quickly masked over.

"Just some things is all. It wont take long."

I wanted a more specific answer, but as she left without another word, I figured the rest of the conversation would have to wait until tomorrow.

I awoke to a gray sky, but there wasn't rain. As I sluggishly made my way down into the kitchen, I saw my mother already awake making breakfast.

"G'mornin'." I mumbled.

"Oh, you're already up. Good, good." She flipped the eggs that were in the pan. "We're leaving to go to the town council-building after breakfast, so be ready."

With a thud, I sat down onto a chair. "You still haven't told me what this is about." I stated, not looking of from the news paper that was now in my hand.

"You'll find out when we get there." She said.

 _How ominous_ , I thought.

I ate breakfast quicker than I had liked, though I had been starving. I help my mother wash up the dishes before she went to retrieve her coat from the closet.

"You driving?" I asked, coming back down from my room, bag and jacket in hand,

"Sure."

I tossed her the keys.

The drive was silent, and my nerves didn't seem to let up, so the whole way there I sat anxiously, tapping on my right leg with my hand as I stared out into the unchanging view of La Push. My mother parked the truck, before turning to me.

"Ready?" was all she said, as we were now in the parking lot.

"As I'll ever be."

I stepped out; my ideas now going haywire as to what the council would want to speak to me about. Maybe they knew that I've been hunting in the woods, and they were going to fine me for whatever reason – maybe being too young and not having adult supervision. That seemed reasonable.

I opened the front door for my mother, which she graciously thanked as we both made our way inside. We were greeted by the receptionist. She looked to be an old woman who was easily in her fifties. I found it strange that I didn't at least somewhat recognize her. Maybe I didn't know the people on the rez as much as I thought I did.

My mother led me towards the back of the building where conferences were held – I knew this as my father used to bring me here all the time as a kid. Though walking through it now felt foreign in a way. I didn't like it.

My mother opened the two doors to the conference room, where I immediately laid eyes on Billy Black, the first person I recognised. Next to him sat old Quil. He was the grandfather of Quil Altera the fifth, and a long-time friend of my father. Beside him sat Leah, sitting in a chair with her arms crossed, and next to her was Sam Uley. My relaxed composure suddenly went ridged.

"Hello, Seth." Billy nodded at me, but my stare only remained tense.

 _What was going on?_

"Take a seat, please." Billy's voice was kind, though I could tell he seemed slightly nervous. I did as he ordered and sat across from the four of them. My mother followed, sitting next to the chair beside me.

"Now, before I get into… anything, I just want to say that if you need any water, there is some there-" He indicated to the jug that was placed in the middle of the table. "and if you need any breaks to… process anything, just let us know."

I nodded, still not having any idea as to what was happening.

"So, Seth." Billy began once more. "I have been informed by these two-" His gaze turned onto both Leah and Sam. "that you know the existence of the wolves?"

I froze.

Was this meeting about _this_? _And they… knew? They knew about the werewolves? What the hell?_

My widened eyes still on Billy; mouth slightly parted as I began mouthing the question.

"Y-you know?"

"Yes, it's apart of the council's job to know."

I felt my back hit the chair, as I simply gazed off into nothing, questioning how this week could get _any_ stranger. My own mother knew about the werewolves. This should have surprised me, but I think by that point, I wouldn't have been shocked to even see Darth Vader walk into the room.

"I know this is a lot to take in, but the first thing you need to understand is that they are not dangerous. It's quite actually the opposite. They're… protecting us."

"Protecting us?" I repeated, disbelieving. "Protecting us from what?"

Billy shifted back, as if he were questioning whether to tell me or not. I waited to know the one question that had been confusing me since yesterday. I needed to.

"Well let's not skip ahead too fast now." My mother said, patting my shoulder, but I simply shrugged her off.

"She's right." I heard old Quil's frail voice speak up.

Billy nodded at this. "Okay, just so we're clear Seth, I need you to say that you understand that the wolves are not hurting anyone."

"The wolves are not hurting anyone." My monotonous voice repeated, growing extremely impatient.

"Okay…" He sighed. "Now, the next thing I will tell you, might come as a shock-"

"JUST-" I paused, stopping myself from losing my rapidly increasing temper. "Just tell me." I said calmly. "Please."

He seemed taken back by my sudden outburst, but continued, once again looking over at Sam and Leah. "Okay, well… the thing is, is that they were born with the gene which turns them into wolves."

I nodded, remembering something similar Paul had said yesterday.

"Well, you also have this gene, and it's very possible in the near future that you may become one as well."

I sat up, hearing the words fully hit me. _I might become one as well._

Moments of silence passed, before the only sound that was heard was the suppressed laughter coming from myself, but I caught sight of Billy's face which looked unamused.

"I-I'm s-sorry, please continue." I said between breathless laughs.

"Seth, this really isn't a laughing matter. I'm being one-hundred percent serious."

"I know." I laughed again. "I know it's real. That's why I'm laughing." Billy just told me that I had the genes of a werewolf, so how could I not be amused by such a thing?

"Oh god." I said wiping the tears from my eyes. "Now that was what I needed." And it really was. I needed just that little tiny push, and now that I had it, I was falling over the edge into the depths of insanity. Questioning whether such a thing was possible would be meaningless at this point, so I accepted it with open arms.

I caught a glance at a figure behind me, and when I shifted my head, I turned onto the rest of the supposed werewolves – even Paul, who looked at me with a worried expression while I tried to contain my erratic fit of laughter.

"So now that you understand that, we should move onto the next thing-"

"You know what?" I cut him off. "I've had my fill of _crazy_ for the day, so I think I'm just gonna head out." I said, standing up from the seat.

"Seth," My mother grabbed my arm. "please just stay till the end."

"No, you know what mom? It's fine, really." My laughing tone had died back down into a more neutral state again. "I don't need to hear anymore, I just… I just need to be alone for a while, okay?" I broke free from her grasp, turning around and pushing my way through the bodies of werewolves. The receptionist said that she hoped I had enjoyed my time there, but I didn't even bother to give a nod as I pushed my way out the front door to my truck.

I was on the road once more, not knowing where I was going. I could barely see as I was once again bawling. My slight mood swings had been off the charts lately, and I hadn't the idea why. _Maybe it was a werewolf thing_ , I thought with humor, but that seemed to make my crying self sob harder than I already had.

I figured that the realization had finally hit – the fact of being told I would one day become the… 'monsters' that I had been chasing for months now. Wasn't there a saying for such a situation? _You either die a hero or live long enough to become the villain_ – or something like that.

Not that I _was_ a hero or anything, but it seemed fitting at that moment.

I stopped the truck in one of the parking spaces at the beach, and the crying had settled into gentle sobs. I stepped out of the truck, almost not even noticing how it was pouring rain. I didn't bother to pull my hood up. I found myself walking around the beach, gently tossing flat rocks into the water, seeing how far they would skip. Me and Paul used to do this when we were kids. It had seemed like forever since then.

At that moment, as I went over everything that had happened in the last few months, I felt as if though a decade had passed since it all started, and I was now twenty-seven years-old.

I was now sitting on a log of driftwood, staring blankly out into nothing, not knowing if I was crying or not as the pouring rain only seemed to come down harder and louder. The log of driftwood moved slightly under added weight, and I looked to my left, seeing Paul.

I didn't greet him. I didn't say anything as I turned my head back out to gaze at the endless sea. My body almost felt so numb that I barely felt it when Paul picked up my hand in his own.

We remained like that for a while, not saying anything; just watching as the rain poured around us. His free hand would sometimes brush the strands of hair out of my face every time the water droplets knocked it down, and his other had been rubbing small circles with his thumb on mine. It was only until I let out the slight shiver that I asked the question that had been eating away at me for months.

"What killed my father." I asked him, though I questioned whether he heard my quiet voice over the rain.

"A vampire." He said loud enough for me to hear.

I could tell he was waiting for my reaction when he said those words, but all I did was nod, grasping onto his hand tighter as I gazed back out into the ocean.


	10. Two Thousand Times

_**Two Thousand Times**_

* * *

A strange feeling lingered in the air as I sat, listening to the antique radio play tunes as I watched as he went about the kitchen, keeping busy, trying to multitask as best he could. The sight was quite amusing, and I couldn't help but feel content, as if the events of today hadn't even happened.

They did though, and as strange as it all was, I was fine. More than fine actually. I guess I just needed something to keep me grounded from all the chaos that had happened, and ironically enough, despite himself being one of the sources of chaos, he kept me calm.

I soon identified the strange feeling that I felt, and as I watched another poof of smoke rise from the frying pan, I realised it was stress.

Paul had been trying to fry fish for about an hour now, and each time he did, he ended up just burning the outside to a rock-hard crisp, and the inside was usually completely raw. How could I not feel the slightest bit of stress when the boy picked up the pan once more to dump another inedible slab of fish into the garbage bucket. By that point, the entire kitchen had been filled with smoke, and the fire alarm had beeped so much that I had to remove it from its case and place it into another room.

"I find your skill to burn anything you cook quite fascinating." I hummed, very amused by the sight in front of me.

He gave me a pout.

"I don't get it! Why does it keep burning so fast?" He whined, clearly miserable from how hungry he was.

"Okay well first, you should turn the dials down off max."

"But then it'll take longer."

"Paul, you've been doing this for an hour. If you tried to cook it normally you would've already been done eating!"

"Normal? Last time I checked, I'm anything but normal." He joked, but the face he made showed that he immediately regretted it. I was silent.

We still hadn't talked about our fight yesterday – or the fact that he was a werewolf for that matter – and while we both had been trying to avoid it as best as we could, we both knew we had to talk about it eventually.

"Seth, I…" His brow wrinkled as he tried to think of the words to say. "I'm really sorry about everything…"

I remained silent, so he continued.

"When I first… turned into a wolf, I was so freaked out." He faintly laughed, trying to find humor in the situation. "It happened so fast… There I was, coming down from my room after I had gotten ready for school, and my father simply looked at me and said 'Paul, can you clean up your dishes please,' and… I exploded."

His brow was furrowed, and I could tell he was finding it difficult to tell the story, so I gave him a reassuring smile. This seemed to give him a slight push.

"I remember my father telling me it was alright. He told me it repeatedly, but all I could do was stare down at the two paws that were now in front of me, and the furniture around me that I had practically destroyed when I phased." He then sighed. "After I got… up to date with what was going on, I joined Sam's pack. At the time it was just him and Jared, so there wasn't really much to do or any rules to follow… besides one."

I watched as his fist clenched tightly, which he then let out a large shiver.

"Sam ordered me not to speak a word of what happened to anyone who didn't already know, not even _you_. It made me so angry that it took me a solid three days before I managed to phase back."

"What do you mean?" I questioned.

"Well… when we want to phase into our wolf form, we only need to get angry for the change to happen." He then laughed out loud. "That's the easiest part for me. I have the worst temper out of all of us. But when we want to phase back into humans, we need to feel happy. Understand now?" He shot me a glance.

"I think? So, you were so mad that you just couldn't change back?"

"Exactly." He then sighed once more. "Finding out I wasn't allowed to tell my best friend drove me mad, and when Sam realised just how bad my temper was, he ordered me to not even go near you. He feared that if I lost my temper when I was with you, you might get hurt in the crossfire." He then looked up at me with pursed lips. "That's how Emily got that scar."

It took me a second before I realised what he meant. "Wait, so _Sam_ did that?"

I remember when I had first seen Emily after she got that scar. My father told Leah and me that she was attacked by a bear. I guess bears were the go-to thing when it came to hiding blame for the werewolves.

"Yeah… He didn't mean to of course!" He quickly added. "It's just that we can get angry so easily, and if it's not controlled well, then accidents like that happen."

"I tired keeping away from you, and after that day on the beach… it got _really_ hard. Eventually Sam understood how being away from you was affecting me, so he allowed me to see you again only if I keep my temper under control. It was hard, but it was worth it for you."

I felt taken back for a second, surprised by the kind words, which I then gave a smile to try and cover up the fact that my face was probably becoming flushed.

"After the funeral, I knew that you were going to question what happened, and I just… I just wanted you to find peace until you learned about us." He was no longer looking at me. "So…"

I merely put my hand up to stop him. "Look, Paul… You don't have to apologize. I get it, alright." I sighed. "Let's not have that stand in the way anymore, okay?"

I was being completely honest. It took me some time to understand everything he had done, but I did get it. He really was just trying to keep me safe, and all the lies he had spoke were only meant to protect me from the horrid truth. More so, even if he _had_ told me everything, he would have just made himself sound like an utter fool. After all, who would believe that their father's death _was_ caused by a vampire, and their best friend _was_ secretly a werewolf?

Paul seemed surprised by my words, but a slight smile crept up onto his face. "Okay." Was all he said, and I couldn't help the smile that soon spread across mine.

I do have questions though." I keenly added, which made him lift an eyebrow.

"Shoot."

"Okay, just… don't promise to laugh or anything, alright?"

"No promises." He flashed me a toothy grin.

I shook out my stiff arms, wondering even if the most basic question would be too silly.

"So… full moons…?"

"No." He was already trying to suppress a smile, which made me reach across the counter to smack his arm. This made him start giggling.

"Anyways…" I then thought as to what the next question would be. "Do you… kill vampires?"

This seemed to surprise him. "Yes, actually… How'd you know?"

"Well I didn't really. But vampires and werewolves are sworn enemies in fiction, right?"

"Correct."

"Is it dangerous?"

"What?"

"Hunting vampires… is it dangerous?"

This seemed to make him pause, and almost immediately I felt myself begin to worry.

"No." He shrugged it off as if it were no big deal.

I was unconvinced. "Seriously?"

"Yeah. I mean, we rarely come across them anyway, but when we do, there's too many of us for it to even fight back."

"But if you came across more than one-"

"It'll still be fine. You don't have to worry about a thing." He cut me off.

I still felt worried, but arguing might've only led to a fight, and I didn't want it to come to that _again_.

I was about to ask another question, but Paul's stomach rumbled loudly, which he then embarrassingly wrapped his arms around him.

"And I guess that just about wraps up twenty-one questions." I chuckled, walking over to the freezer to fetch out two bags of fish. Placing them in the pan, I watch Paul make a grumbled look as I turned the dial down on low, which made me let out a soft laugh.

"Patience." I said. He merely rolled his eyes before sauntering over to lean on the counter next to me with one arm.

The feeling that overcame me felt nostalgic, as it felt like it had been a while since me and Paul had casually hung out as friends, but more so with no secrets between us. We knew each other once again, and there was no doubt nor confusion. It felt right.

Much to Paul's complaining, I was able to fry the fish relatively fast, which I might add looked just as great as my fathers. He had taught me his famous recipe when I was younger, so I was surprised after all this time that I had remembered every detail. I sat and watched as the boy devoured everything in less than a minute, which brought a question to my mind.

"Hey, so you're stomach now being a massive blackhole, is that a werewolf thing _?_ "

"Yupphurs." He replied, chunks of fish flying out from his mouth in the process.

"Wow, okay, I asked for the news, not the weather." I laughed while brushing the chunks off the table, which made him give a food-stuffed grin.

After Paul's little chow fest, I picked up his plate and brought it over to the sink to wash.

"You'd make an excellent house husband, you know that?" He said, sneaking up behind. I nudged him while giving a grin.

"Only for you."

It was an obvious joke, but this seemed to put Paul off. His's hazy eyes were staring into mine, and I felt myself lean back onto the counter next to him, raising a brow to question the kind of look he seemed to be giving me. He didn't seem to acknowledge it; his eyes still boring into mine as he licked his lips. The confidence he always seemed to radiate no longer was there, and instead he looked afraid – of what exactly I didn't have the clue. His propped-up arm shifted, allowing his body to turn more towards me; his forearm brushing up against mine, and I only shivered as I felt that of electricity run through me from the contact alone. His face was closer to mine now, and I felt myself lean in ever so slightly, the heat off his body already hitting me in intense waves.

I gulped, feeling as if though the atmosphere had changed rapidly. Paul didn't seem to notice it – or anything for that matter – and continued his staring contest, which he was winning by a long shot. His whole body shifted closer and was now practically touching mine. I stared up into his face, wondering what was happening, because I knew for a fact that something _was_ happening.

His eyes were telling me something, but the question was _what_? I felt his hot breath hit my face in rhythmic patterns, which only made mine grow shallower.

His brow was furrowed, and it looked like he was asking me something. Asking permission for something, and though I didn't know what it was or what to say, I felt myself nod.

His hands were now gripped on to the counter on either side of me, and I watched as his Adam's apple bobbed from him swallowing hard, before his face began leaning in, closer and closer.

But the sound of the front door opening made me jolt, and Paul jumped away, clearly shocked as well.

"Paul, are you home-" Paul's father had walked into the doorway, only to stop as he caught sight of me. "Oh, hello Seth. I didn't know you would be here."

"U-uh, hi Chris." I said, not letting my eyes meet Paul.

"Don't worry, I'll be out of your guys' hair right quick. I was just heading to bed anyway." The man said, taking off his jacket to hang over one of the chairs and then getting a can of pop out of the fridge before fleeing up the stairs.

It was silent.

 _Did Paul just try to kiss me? No… No, that's not possible_ , I thought.

"You uh… wanna watch a movie?" Paul asked me, fiddling with the hem of his shirt.

"S-sure…"

I trailed behind Paul as he walked into the Livingroom. I hopped onto the loveseat in front of the massive tv, and I watched as Paul kneeled by a rack filled with DVDs. He picked out Die Hard, which wasn't a shocker. Paul's love for that movie was unmatched, and how he watched it repeatedly was beyond me, but it was just one of the quirks that I adored about him.

Paul sat down next to me, and I felt my body lean towards him ever so slightly. Whatever spark that I felt when he brushed up against me in the kitchen, I wanted to feel it once more. And as if he was reading my mind, Paul's arm wrapped around me and pulled me in towards his heated body, though he almost seemed hesitant to do so. My face was tinted red yet again, and I wanted to slap myself for making my feeling so obvious, though Paul had always been a little dense in that department, so he didn't notice all the little things I was doing which made me look like the high school boy in love that I was.

"The heat that radiates off you; is that a werewolf thing?"

"Yup." He whispered, his eyes not glancing away from the movie.

I couldn't pay attention to the screen, and while usually it would be because I just didn't care for action flicks, at that moment it was because I was in a trance from the way Paul's hand mindlessly rubbed circles on mine. I snapped out of it at times, like when Paul let out a deep chuckle, or when his head turned ever so slightly to peak down at me.

There was something between us, but I couldn't guess what it was. My mind of course begged me to think that it was something romantic, and while I knew it was just false hope, there was a part of me that thought just maybe…

Paul let out a loud yawn. "Man, that movie will never get old."

"Whatever you say." I rolled my eyes, smiling up at him.

He gave a mock-offended look. "Seth Clearwater, are you telling me you _don't_ like Die Hard?"

"Oh, I did the first time we watched it together, but you know, after the next two _thousand_ times, it kind of got a bit dull." My smile was wider now.

"Two thousand times, eh? I must be like… the best Die Hard fan there ever was then, huh?"

"No contest."

He gave me his famous cocky grin, before quickly hopping up off the couch. I couldn't help the slight disappointment that followed. He yawned once again.

"Wanna head to bed?"

I hesitated. _Did_ I want to sleep in Paul's bed? I mean, he had slept in mine so many times I couldn't count, but I felt that somehow this was different. As if it meant something else.

"I uh… I think I'm just going to head home." I mumbled, not meeting his gaze.

"Oh." He sounded disappointed. "Okay."

"I'll see you tomorrow?" I questioned, trying to lighten the dampened mood by giving a warm smile. It didn't work.

"Yeah, sure."

He walked me to the door while helping me get my still slightly damp coat on.

"Do you want me to drive you?"

I shot him a questioning look. "Then how would you get home?"

He paused before giving me a look. My eyes widened for a second, understanding what he meant.

"Ah, right... no, I think I'll be okay. Really."

"…Okay."

There was a pause, and almost immediately it felt as if though we were going to continue what had happened in the kitchen, but I knew that my heart wouldn't be able to handle such things, so I simply said my goodbyes and headed out the door. Paul watched from the doorframe as I got into my truck and drove off.

I had taken my time getting home, and by that point, the reality of what had happened that night hit me in full force. My mother had spotted me when I walked in through the door, and obviously looked like she wanted to talk about the events that had happened today, but I ignored her and sprinted up to my room in what probably looked like panic, locking the door behind me. My mother of course followed, bagging on my door to ask me if I was okay. She probably thought that I was taking all the things with werewolves horribly, but that wasn't even close.

The question popped into my head the moment I had gotten into my room.

Did Paul mean to kiss me back there? And why would Paul want to kiss me? He likes someone else. Whoever this… _imprint_ person was. I _must_ have been seeing things. Paul liking me was just simply impossible.

 _Right?_

That night, I knew I had to distract myself from thinking anymore about the situation, so I ended up finishing the last bit of school work that I had to pass in.

The past month I've taken a break from school. My father's passing had hit me hard, so for the first two weeks I didn't even show my face in school. When I finally came around to it, I merely went in at lunch time to collect all the work that I had missed – with Leah I might add. I found it strange, as when I told my mother that I wanted to head to school, she freaked out, and I didn't have any clue as to why. But, with enough persistence, I was able to convince her to let me, but only if Leah came along as an escort.

I concluded that she thought that I might not have been ready to return, and that I might have broken down crying at any second. She wasn't wrong.

Ever since then, Leah had been retrieving my homework amongst other things. Occasionally I went with her much to my mother's dismay. She also didn't forget to remind me that the school on the rez had finally opened back up, and all the students who had been transferred to Forks returned there – well, besides myself of course. I told her I wanted to stay where I was, and this made her almost lose her top.

I figured that my mother would no longer need to worry about me having a breakdown in the middle of a class as it _had_ been over a month since my father's passing. I decided that I would go to school the next day.

I was doing the last formula for precalculus when I felt my eyes become heavy, so I quickly finished up before tossing the book onto my desk and shutting off the lamp. I fell asleep repeating problems over and over in my head to distract myself from thinking about Paul.

 _I was driving on a road – where it led to I hadn't the clue. Immediately I recognized I was dreaming. I looked to my left to see Paul. He had the passenger side window down, and he leaned onto it, staring straight ahead and looking at peace. My eyes remained on him, but my steering stayed perfectly straight, and I simply sat back and watched. His face turned towards me, and the smile he wore was brilliant. The boy leaned over across the truck, and I then felt his lips press to mine. It was a simple yet passionate kiss – one that made me get butterflies in my stomach, and I couldn't help but let out a giggle as he pulled away. It felt so casual and right._

" _I imprinted on someone." His voice was barely a whisper._

 _I wanted to ask the very question that had been bugging me. Who did he imprint on? But as I opened my mouth, I said nothing, as I was too afraid of the answer I would get._

 _He spoke, but his voice sounded wrong. It mimicked my sister. "Imprinting is like… when you first look at them – look right into their eyes – you know they're the one. And then suddenly, it's no longer your own two feet that are keeping you on the ground, but instead, it's them. Like if your whole world shifted from under you."_

 _I felt my brows furrow at this. "So, love at first sight?"_

" _You could say something like that." His voice was his own again._

 _Suddenly, Paul disappeared from the passenger side, and as I turned to stare out the windshield, I was no longer on an endless road, but instead, facing the rocky beach of La Push. Laughing met my ears, and I found myself turning to look out the window where Paul once sat, and I saw him._

 _Sam Uley was walking out of the woods, his face as stern as ever, and behind him was Jared, and then Embry, and then Paul._

 _Paul was laughing a laugh so lighthearted, and I felt my heart skip a beat when I heard it. The figures disappeared once more, and I found myself glancing out the side and back window, wondering where they could have gone. That's when I spotted the person standing outside my door._

 _I felt like I was suffocating._

 _He was looking down at the ground, his face so full of pain and sorrow, and I couldn't help but shout the words that came next._

" _Paul, look at me!" I shouted out, and I watched as his eyes met mine._

 _For a second, there was nothing. Paul's angered gaze was on me, and I watched as his expression slowly melted to confusion, and then to fear._

 _He looked as if his whole world had shifted from under him._

I felt my ragged self gasp for air as both of my arms pushed me off the pillow that I lay face down in. My breaths were quick and panting, and my arms were violently shaking to the point where I was concerned that they might snap off, but none of that seemed to bother me as one question slammed into my head.

 _Did Paul imprint on me?_

"Oh god…" I groaned, putting a hand to my head and feeling how much it was killing me. I sat up in bed, putting my knees to my chest and wrapping my arms around them. "Okay, Seth. Just… think this over."

Was it really that crazy to think that Paul had… imprinted on me? I didn't have any reason not to believe such a thing, but I also didn't have any facts to back anything up. I did remember Paul telling me that they had never really them before he imprinted, but I also remember not being fully convinced, and if it was a lie, it wouldn't be the first he told in the last few months. But still, even if Paul had imprinted on me, why wouldn't he have told me?

My thoughts began racing around, trying to find some explanation, until I thought back to what had happened two days ago, and what mysterious item I had found.

The journal that revealed all the secrets Paul had kept from me. One entry floated back to my brain, and I remember how Paul described how he was scared that I would _hate_ him. At first, I assumed he thought I would hate him because he imprinted on a guy, but I reckoned I misunderstood.

Maybe he thought I would hate him _because_ he imprinted on me.

Would it truly be foolish to believe such a thing? Or was it just myself overthinking. The second one seemed plausible, but I _wanted_ to believe that I really wasn't overreacting.

I let out another groan, falling back onto my pillow and trying my hardest to let sleep overcome me so I would no longer have to think about it.

My blaring alarm woke me from my sleepless slumber. Groggily I got up from the bed, looking out the window to see the sky as foggy as ever. I stumbled over to my closet, picking out a brown shirt, jeans, and a light green jacket just in case if it began to rain.

The steamy hot water beat off my back while I thought to how nervous I was about returning to school. I didn't even let myself think back to what I had came to realise last night.

My mother had already left, so I spent my morning alone at the kitchen table, slowly eating cereal as my eyes began tracing the pattern in the doorframe of the kitchen, until finally I couldn't take it anymore. I almost broke the bowl by tossing it into the sink carelessly and made my way to the porch, grabbing my bag and keys before opening the front door and locking it behind me.

The drive to school was tedious, as I had no way to distract myself besides trying (and failing) to play the license plate game all by myself on a road where almost no cars traveled on. I couldn't help but sigh as I reached the outskirts of Forks. After driving up a hill, I was met with the sight of the high school, and felt a wave of happiness, as I had successfully not thought about the thing I didn't want to think about.

The school hadn't changed, and I found some relief in that. I was met with the brisk morning air as I stepped out of the truck, and I made I way into the crowd of people that were by the steps heading up to the doors. Maneuvering around them all was difficult, but eventually I had made it inside. The first thing I did was go straight to my locker, as I knew that there was no way in hell I was going to remember what my classes were.

It took me a good ten tries with my locker combo before I was able to guess it right to my relief. I really wasn't in the mood to go back out into the cold to walk two minutes to the administrator's office just to get a flimsy code.

When I close the locker door, I was met with the face of a tall figure – one who was staring right at me.

At first, I did a doubletake. The very first thing that caught me off guard was how pale this person was, and strangely beautiful. His hair was a reddish-brown color, and was styled up. He looked like a model that you would see in a magazine. But soon enough, I quickly put a name to the face, and remembered that the person I was staring at was a Cullen.

I found it strange, as I distinctly remember Dr. Cullen and his family moving away back in September, so it made me question why they had returned.

I also remember how much my father had despised the Cullens – for _whatever_ reason.

The Cullen boy was giving me a look that I couldn't identify, but I shrugged it off, turning around and making my way to photography class.

The teacher, Ms. Cherny greeted me with a warm smile, saying it had been a while since she had seen me, and then of course asked me if I was doing okay (and using the classic sympathetic head-tilt might I add). I responded coolly before taking a seat in my usual desk. Angela Weber waved at me, and I returned the gesture with pleasure.

Photography class wasn't too eventful. I had already studied all the things that Ms. Cherny was teaching, so I was left to gaze out the window, trying exceedingly hard not to think of anything.

Lunchtime soon came around, and while I contemplated eating out in my truck, I quickly dismissed it, figuring it wasn't worth the trouble. I bought myself a greasy pizza with a soda and roamed over to an empty table. The first thing I did was reach into my bag and haul out a book to read. It was Dracula – the copy I had bought that time in Port Angeles. I'd been meaning to read it, as I had already finished Frankenstein in April when I had been moping around.

I clicked opened the drink can, before settling in and wanting to enjoy the serenity to come.

"Seth!" Someone called out.

So much for that.

I glanced up, looking around to see who had called my name, only to lay eyes on both Angela Weber and Ben Cheney, along with all the people they sat with – one of them being Bella Swan, and the other as the Cullen boy I had recognized this morning. Ben began gesturing to come over, patting an empty spot next to him to tell me to come sit with them, but feeling slightly unsociable, I merely waved him off, only to mouth the words ' _thank you anyways_ '. He expressed an understanding smile, along with a sympathetic head-tilt.

I was extremely appreciative of the invitation though and was glad that my disappearance for an entire month didn't seem to affect our friendship.

Reading Dracula was… an experience – especially since I had found out very recently that the existence of such a _being_ was real, which began to turn my stomach slightly, but not because it was possible I was in danger, but from the fact that Paul and Leah would be. I know Paul said hunting… vampires wasn't dangerous, but if the pack is hunting them then they're not harmless. The fact of how big the wolves were eased my worry quite a bit.

But there was still something at the pit of my stomach telling me something was wrong. I casually glanced around, not looking at anything in particular, but something caught my eye. The pretty Cullen boy's eyes bore into me. I felt stunned as I began to question what I had done to make the boy upset, and just as fast as my gaze landed on him, it shot right back down to the book in front of me. Moments later I glanced back up, noticing he no longer was staring.

The sound of the bell made me almost jump out of my seat, and I quickly packed up my books before making my way to my next class.

The day passed by, and I was soon back on the road to the rez. I considered today to be a success. Sure, I wasn't really that sociable with anyone, nor did I pay much attention in most of my classes, but the good thing was that I could see myself getting back into the habit of going to school everyday, and there really wasn't anything holding me back.

Sure, the whole werewolf thing was a big change in my life, but it didn't directly affect me – yet anyways. Billy had said that it was possible I would soon join the others. How that was going to happen, I hadn't the clue. I didn't really feel any different, so I couldn't see how it was possible, but maybe there weren't any indicators for when I would become one.

Or maybe fiction would become reality, and I would need someone in Sam's pack to bite or scratch me and wait for a full moon, though ironically enough, that was unlikely. Paul had already dismissed most of what I thought a werewolf was as fiction. Plus, there was the obvious fact that they didn't really look much like fictional werewolves either, because if I wasn't mistaken, werewolves usually were bipedal, but these _real_ ones were quadruped. Everything I had learned in fiction really was nothing more than _fiction_.

Though no matter how hard I tried distracting myself, soon enough my thoughts had made a full circle and were now back on Paul.

I couldn't come to a conclusion on the whole imprint thing. Hell, I didn't even know if I wanted to come to one, as I feared that the truth would just disappoint me, but I knew I had to confront him soon enough – if I could find the nerve to do it.

My automatic and mindless driving soon came to a crashing end, as my eyes quickly caught something jump out on my side of the road, and I let out a loud gasp as my foot slammed down onto the break.

My body flung forward onto the wheel, and then slamming back onto the seat. I let out a long groan, rubbing my chest as my eyes adjusted to what was in front of my truck.

Panic mode switched off and almost immediately anger bubbled up. I practically ripped off the seat belt before shoving my door open and jumping out.

"WHAT THE HELL!" I screamed at the large wolf in front of me. It let out a breath as it's long eyes eyed me up and down.

Its fur was a light shade of brown, though much darker around the eyes – almost like it wore a mask. It turned to trot back into the woods, and I almost immediately began to follow, not caring if a vehicle drove up behind me. As I was about to enter the treeline, a boy with copper skin appeared in front of me.

Jared Cameron.

"Jared, what the hell was that?"

"Sorry, needed to talk to you is all." He shrugged.

"Talk to me?" I asked. Was it a common werewolf thing to jump out into traffic and try to cause accidents? "What are you doing jumping out in the middle of the road? Do you have a death wish?"

He chuckled at this. "Oh please, if either one of us was getting hurt in that situation, it would be you by a long shot."

"Okay… Well what do you need to talk about?"

"We were out looking for you."

"We?"

"Yes, the whole pack."

"Why?"

"Your mother called Sam. She said you hadn't been home for hours and was worried you ran away, freaking out about the whole wolf thing."

Of course, worrywart Sue, always making mountains of the molehills.

"Oh… well I'm fine, really." I assured.

His eyes narrowed at me. "Whatever you say." He hummed, beginning walking back into the woods.

"Where are you off to?"

"Letting the others know you're alright. You should get back home."

And as fast as he came, he was gone again. Unsurprising though. Jared was never really a people person. I sighed, turning around and fleeing back to my truck.

Soon, I turned into my driveway, and almost immediately out came my mother. I hopped out of the truck.

"Seth Clearwater, where have you been?" She demanded to know, hitting my arm with a rolled-up newspaper.

"Ow?"

She gave me daggering eyes.

"I was just at school, it's no biggie."

The face she made upon hearing this looked like she has just witnessed me shooting someone.

"S-school?" She practically yelled.

"Yes?" Now I was confused. Why would she be mad about this? Was me learning a bad thing now? "What's the big deal?"

"The _big deal_ is you never told me!" She seemed unreasonably upset.

"And?"

She hit me with the paper again.

"Stop hitting me!"

"Seth, if you were returning to school, you should have told me!"

"Why?"

"Because Forks high school is not safe."

Not safe? Did something happen while I was on break? From as far as I could tell, absolutely nothing had changed. Everything had been just about the same as it always had been.

"Hey." A voice spoke, and I immediately let out a shout, jumping back next to my mother to look at the figure who had snuck up behind me.

Paul. The first thing I noticed was that he wasn't wearing a shirt – how unsurprising.

"Where have you been?" He questioned, looking just as worried as Sue.

"I was just at school."

He seemed taken back by this, and his face grew serious. "You were at the high school?"

"Yes? Why is that such a big deal?" I felt myself laugh awkwardly, looking back and forth between the two.

Paul seemed hesitant to speak, but when he did, his voice was low and cautious.

"Seth, there's vampires at school."


	11. A Rock and a Hard Place

_**A Rock and a Hard Place**_

* * *

The next day was peculiar. I did go back to school, but under very strict conditions.

"-and whatever you do, just don't interact with one of them. Avoid them at all costs-" Jared was prattling on by my side, and I couldn't help but mentally sigh, questioning if a high school education was really worth all this trouble.

After finding out the day before that there were vampires at the school, I've been under what seemed to be some sort of whiteness protection program. It came as a mighty shock to me that the Cullens were the ones I should be fearing, but the more I had thought about it, the more it seemed to make sense.

Last year I had the flu, and while usually it would go away within a couple of days, this one seemed to stay for over two weeks; I only got more and more miserable by the second. The doctor on the rez was completely out of ideas, and suggested that we pay a visit to the hospital in Forks. My father almost threw a tantrum. It took a lot of convincing, but eventually my parents did bring me there – along with Sam of all people – he was still with my sister then.

I couldn't ever fathom why my father had made it into such a big deal, and even insisted that Sam came along with us, but now it finally made sense.

Dr. Cullen was a vampire, and my father was afraid he would have killed me. Sam was a werewolf, so he came along to protect me. It all seems completely reasonable at first, but there was still something I couldn't get.

Apparently, the Cullens aren't like the ' _typical_ ' vampires you hear about in fiction who drink human blood. They claim they are _different_ , and instead drink only animal blood. They have said that they don't mean any harm to the town of Forks nor anyone in La Push, and only wish to live a life of peace, and they have been proving that for the past _sixty_ years.

Back in the 1940's, the Cullens apparently showed up in Forks, and that's where they met the Quileute werewolves, and their leader, Ephraim Black – Jacob's great grandfather. They made a treaty – one where the Cullens were forbidden to cross over into Quileute territory, and even more so, to never drink another human's blood.

Ever since then, the Cullens have obeyed that treaty, but somehow, I felt more confused than before.

If the Cullens really weren't any harm like they so obviously proved, why did I need a personal bodyguard during school hours, and why in the hell did it have to be Jared of all people?

After telling Sam about the whole situation, both him and my mother (and Paul might I add) seemed to be on the same boat in which I was to never return to Forks high school again, but I wasn't having that. After a hefty amount of arguing and convincing, Sam concluded that it would be ' _acceptable_ ' for me to go to school, but only with a member of the pack to act as a bodyguard. Paul was the first one to volunteer, and honestly, if it had been Paul with me, I would've actually liked the whole idea. _But_ , Sam said that Paul's temper was still less than adequate, so he instead chose someone who would be able to keep themselves under control.

And that person was Jared.

Jared had apparently been the one to watch most of the Quileute students last year when everyone was relocated to Forks high school for the time being, but when the Cullens had left back in the Fall, his job shifted into keeping an eye only on Paul, as he seemed to be showing signs to _phasing –_ and now me.

Jared's been pretty okay with the whole thing so far, though I still didn't really know how to feel about it. Sure, I thought Jared was an alright guy. I didn't really know him that well, though. Maybe I could use this time to make a new friend, cause _god knows_ I definitely don't have many of those.

It was when we reached the front steps of the school that Jared finally got my attention again.

"Seth, are you even listening?"

I glanced at him shrugging.

With a hefty sigh, he merely turned to walk through the doors, mumbling what I could swear was _'What does Paul see in you'_. There was a brief moment of shock, as the thoughts from yesterday made a return. Jared caught a glance at my frozen figure and turned around with an annoyed look.

"Well? Come on!"

I scurried in after him.

In Photography class, we were paired up in groups to work on a project, and I couldn't've thanked Angela enough when she asked to be partners. We had pull a name out of a bowl that was passed around, and on it would be the name of a famous photographer that we would have to do a research paper on. Me and Angela got Dorothea Lange, who was best known on her photography from the depression era. Most of the class was spent researching through worn-out textbooks, but a bit was spent with Angela trying to make conversation.

"So, how've you been doing, Seth?" She asked me. Even though I'd been asked that questions many times in the past month, no one had asked it like she did. There wasn't any pity in her voice, and there wasn't any head-tilting. It was casual, friendly even.

It felt refreshing.

"I've been good." I smiled back.

Angela had always been easy to talk to, and easy to understand. She told me about what she'd been up to since we last spoke, and I listened intently, truly interested in what she had to say. It was also surprising, as I'd never heard her talk so much before. Since my absence, it's like she'd cracked open the shell she had around her, making her shyness all but disappear. I envied that.

Pre-calculus was horrible, but not because of the subject. I had completely forgot Jared was in this class, and he took a seat next to me – the one Paul had always sat in. People greeted him, saying things like 'Welcome back'. Others asked him where he had been; he told swift and believable lies. All through that class I suffered as Jared let out a constant string of complaints, obviously showing how much he hated being there. It took _one_ period for the boy to all but give up on the little assignment Sam had assigned him to. I couldn't concentrate on my work for even a second, and by the end of it, I contemplated punching the boy in the crotch.

Lunch was about the same. More complaining from Jared, more of me wishing that the next period would come sooner, and more resisting the urge to punch the boy.

The end of the day rolled around, and I strode back out into the parking lot, looking around to see if I could spot Jared. I couldn't find him anywhere, so I waited by my truck for a good fifteen minutes before I noticed a slip of paper in the passenger side window.

 _ **Seth,**_

 _ **Had stuff to do.**_

 _ **\- Jared**_

"Oh for goodness sake." I groaned, ripping the paper off the window and scurrying over to the driver's side.

When I was about to open the door, movement caught my eye. I glanced up, before freezing when I was met with the face of a Cullen.

It was the one from yesterday, and just like yesterday, he gazed at me with an expression so… strange. Though, it's not like I was a werewolf (yet), so I found it quite odd that he had been singling me out. Did he just assume all natives from the rez were werewolves unless proven otherwise? That would seem very irrational. More so, now that I knew he was a vampire, I knew I should've felt fear in some way, but oddly enough, I didn't.

The boys eyes narrowed at me, probably wondering why I was staring.

I didn't feel any fear because I knew that there wasn't really anything to fear. After all, if they claim that they truly don't hurt people, and they had been proving it for years now, why should I have any reason to doubt it. I smiled at the boy and gave a friendly wave before turning and hopping into the truck.

As I drove off, I could swear that his face looked shocked.

I made it home later than usual, and Paul was waiting restlessly in the driveway. I didn't even have time to get my bag when Paul opened the door.

"Where have you been!" he demanded to know. I raised a brow at him.

"Okay, let's try that again, but a little nicer this time."

He sighed, looking a bit guilty. "Sorry, sorry. Where have you been? I've been worried sick."

This made me laugh. "Paul I was at school, where else?"

"Yes, but it takes only thirty minutes to get home, and school is out by 2:30, and right now it's 3:18."

"Since when did you learn how to do math?"

"Seth…" he warned.

"I was just waiting for Jared! He didn't tell me he was leaving and he left me a note that I found after wait forever on him."

I watched as he turned around to clench onto his face, letting out a low growl.

"That asshole."

I hopped out of the truck. "Paul, it's not that big of a deal…"

"Yes it is, Seth!" he shouted, making me flinch slightly. "What if you had gotten attacked by one of those filthy leeches? You'd be defenseless because he left!"

I was becoming irritated, and as he was about to shout more, I pointed a finger at him.

"Stop it." I warned. "I refuse to be treated like some sort of fragile object, and I refuse to have some god damn baby sitter watching my every move."

"Okay, so what happens when one of those bloodsuckers approaches you?"

"Nothing!"

"And how would you know that!"

"Because it already happened-" I cut myself off.

 _Shit._

Paul's eyes grew wide. "What…?"

"I-I… He just…"

"He…?"

I wanted to explain myself – explain little interaction that had happened – but I was too caught up in Paul expression. He was processing what I had said, and he looked scary. He looked _violent_. I couldn't understand what was happening, as one moment he was looking at me with such a murderous look, and then he was crouched over, letting out loud huffs, his whole body shaking as if an earthquake was happening inside him.

My first instinct was that he was having a seizure. I was quickly by his side, one hand on his back and asking what was wrong. He tried talking, but the shaking only got worse, and any sort of sounds that left his mouth were growls.

"Seth!" A voice called out to me, but when I looked up, I was already being pulled away from the boy I was crouched next to.

"Let me go!" I barked at Leah, but she had a iron-tight grip around my waist.

"Stop." She commanded. I did as I was told, but I couldn't help but stare at Paul, who was still in the same state.

"What's wrong with him?"

"Just wait a moment!" She told me.

I did, and as a moment passed, Paul's shaking calmed, and slowly, his breathing became rhythmic, and he laid still. That's when Leah's grip released, and I ran back over to the boy.

"Paul?" I asked, my voice sounding as if I were on the verge of tears.

"Get you're shit together, Lahote!" Leah shouted, turning around and strutting back into the house. I stared daggers into her back the whole way, though quickly turned back to Paul when he let out a groan. I helped him as he tried standing back up.

"What the hell was that?" I asked him, the tears finally breaking as I realised just how scared I had been.

He didn't answer though, and after a few seconds, he leaned his head down on my shoulder, before pulling me into a tight hug.

"I'm sorry." He whimpered.

I let out a choked-back laugh. "What are you apologizing for."

"Seth…" He said, lifting his head back up to stare down at me. "When you see me like that again, get as far away from me as you can, okay?"

"B-but why…?"

"Accidents can happen." He smiled weakly.

I assumed it was some wolf thing, so I merely nodded, pulling away from his hug and dragging him inside the house by one hand.

I sat him down on the couch, before retreating into the kitchen to fetch a glass of water.

"Here," I passed it to him. "bottoms up."

In one long chug, he emptied the whole glass.

"Another?"

"Naw, I'm good now, thanks."

I wanted to talk about what had just happened, but my mother came strolling into the room.

"Oh, Seth! How'd school go?"

For a second, I contemplated telling her what had happened, but with Paul in the room, it probably wasn't the best idea.

"It went fine. No troubles what so ever." I lied, giving her a convincing smile.

"Good, good," she caught sight of the figure behind me. "Oh, Paul, you look a little pale. Are you feeling okay, sweetie?"

"I'm fine." He gave half a smiled.

She seemed weary of that answer, but she let it go.

"Seth, are you going in for work today?" She turned back to me.

My eyes widened. "Oh god, I completely forgot! Let me go get ready-"

"Oh no, it's fine dear. I didn't have to attend any council meetings today, so I don't mind doing it."

"Are you sure?" I asked, feeling slightly guilty for not wanting to turn down her offer.

"Of course. You two have fun, and I'll see you later." She said before excusing herself.

It would've only been my second time working, and I was basically already taking a sick day.

* * *

An hour had passed, and I whipped up a plate of fried fish and brought it up to my room where Paul was resided. He had been on patrol all day and was exhausted, so he took a nap in my bed. When I reached my room door, I opened it very quietly, before closing it again. I tiptoed over to the bed, reaching a hand down to his arm and giving it a slight shake.

"Hey." I whispered.

His one of his eyes peaked open, and I couldn't help but smile at how adorable the gesture was. A slight smile spread on his face, and I couldn't help but smile back.

"I cooked some fish. You hungry?"

It was as if a switch went off in his head, as his eyes shot open and he sat up quicker than I thought possible.

"Yes please." He looked eager.

I passed the plate to him, which he then put into his lap and began devouring it in seconds. He then handed me it back empty with a pleased look.

"I'm not your maid." I teased.

"Oh, sorry." He mumbled with embarrassment, before beginning to stand up. I rolled my eyes, pushing him back down onto the bed.

"I'm only joking." I took the plate out of his hands and placed it onto my desk. Silence then followed.

"So you are my maid then?" He asked with a teasing voice, which only made me stick my tongue out at him.

When I glanced back, his face was no longer playful.

"Look, I um… I'm sorry about how I reacted about the whole leech thing." He stared back at me with an expression that made me queasy. "I just worry about you – more than you'll ever know, really."

"I think I do know." I smiled, taking a seat next to him. "I'm sorry too. You were trusting me not to go near them and I betrayed that trust. But Paul…" I trailed off. "I really don't think I was in any sort of danger. I was just by my truck when he came walking along. I guess he knew who I was for a second, because he stared at me for a second. All I did really was give him a smile before getting into my truck and driving away. That's it."

Paul's lips pursed. "What did he look like?"

"Um, about your height, with reddish-brown hair and pale skin."

"Edward." Paul sighed.

"You know him?" I lifted a brow.

"No, but Jacob does. He never stops thinking about the guy."

I made an 'O' with my mouth, understanding what he meant. "Oh yeah…? So kind of like some Romeo and Juliet thing?"

He gazed over at me, questioning what I meant, thought after a moment, he seemed to understand; going wide eyed. He then had burst into tear-filled laugher.

"Oh god," He said in between laughs. "No, no, nothing like that at _all_!"

I couldn't help but be lost as to how my question seemed funny in any way.

"No, you see, Jacob likes this girl named Bella-"

"Bella Swan?"

"Yeah, her. Anyways, Jacob is like practically in love with her, but she's dating that leech named Edward."

I was taken back by his words.

"She's dating a vampire?" I was utterly shocked. I mean sure, I didn't dislike the Cullens as I hadn't reason to, but a regular girl dating a vampire seems… strange.

But then again, I was in love with a werewolf, so I guess it's not _that_ strange.

"Yep. Twisted if you ask me." He grumbled.

"You're a werewolf." I reminded.

"Yeah, but that's different, he's able to eat her! With me and you it's more-"

I cut him off. "You and me?"

His eyes went wide. "Uh… I-I mean um…"

"What…?" I asked again, now processing the words he'd just said.

 _Did… did Paul just confirm it? Was that a slipup, and did it just confirm everything I've been questioning?_

"With me and you it's different, because well-… well my natural food source isn't… you – my friend!" He added at the end.

"Your friend?" I asked, probably seeming a lot more cautious.

What ever expression I had on seemed to worry him… he looked sad almost.

"Yes. My friend."

"…Okay."

Silence relapsed.

He denied it. He said we were friends, that's it.

But I didn't believe him one bit. For the first time, I didn't doubt that he actually liked me. It was a strange feeling. Though the unsettling thing was, I didn't feel relieved. If anything, I felt even more worried, because if he did in fact like me, and he _did_ in fact imprint on me, why was he keeping it from me. It couldn't've possibly been something I've done, _right_? It's not like I had ever rejected him in anyway. I told him I was more than fine with him being gay. I'd been more than fine with all of the intimate moments we had with each other, like when he held my hand, or hugged me, or even when we laid in my bed together. If anything, I felt as if I were making it _very_ obvious I liked him, so why wouldn't he tell me? Was it something to do with him? Was it that he liked me, but he didn't _want_ to like me in that way? That couldn't possibly be the case.

It's not like I can tell him I like him either. After all, even if there was the tiniest chance I was wrong about this, and I told him that I liked him, it could possibly destroy our whole friendship, and I knew I couldn't let that happen. I cared for him too much for him to be out of my life.

I was stuck between a rock and a hard place. If I maneuvered one way, Charybdis would swallow me whole, and if I tired the other way, Scylla would do the exact same.

 _I definitely had read way to much mythology back in March._

I felt like I was trapped. I was suffocating.

I decided to move on from that horridly awkward moment, though there was always some tension in the air.

"So, the um… Edward, Jacob, Bella thing…"

"Oh right," he seemed more than happy to move on. "Bella is dating Edward, but Jacob is in love with Bella, and Jacob thinks that he still has a shot with her. In my opinion, Jacob is too oblivious to see that Bella only loves that leech."

"You seem pretty knowledgeable about this subject," I gave a teasing smile "since when did you pick up an interest in gossip?"

"Mmm, more like I'm forced to hear it. You see, when were in wolf form, the whole pack can read each other's minds. It's so annoying sometimes."

"Mind reading, huh. That seems pretty dang cool."

"Annoying, though."

"Always knowing each other's thoughts…"

"Super annoying."

"Not ever having secrets…"

"So annoying."

"Hmm," I hummed, putting a hand on my chin to think. "I have a question though."

"Shoot."

"Does it get annoying?" I gave him a devilish grin.

"Eh, it's not too bad." He grinned back, giving me a friendly push on the arm before letting out a yawn.

"Still tired?"

"kinda."

"I'd be up for a nap."

"We can be nap buddies."

I laughed for what felt like the hundredth time that day. Paul fell back onto the pillow, his arm stretched out on one side. I lid next to him, my head resting on his arm and my body close to his. We stayed like that for a while, and when I figured he was finally asleep, I made my move, cuddling in closer to him.

That's when I felt his head move to look down at me, and I froze. What I didn't expect was for Paul to turn onto his side, wrapping one arm around my waist, and pulling me in close to his broad chest, and burying his face into my hair.

And at that moment, I knew for sure that somehow, Paul Lahote liked me, imprint or not.

What that meant; I sure as hell didn't have a clue.

I awoke to the sound of a door closing, and I glanced around my room, seeing only darkness. The body that laid next to me was no longer there, but the spot was still warm. That's when I heard footsteps on the stairs, and soon after came the opening of my bedroom door. By the silhouette alone I could tell it was Paul. I reached over to turn on my lamp.

"Hey." I murmured, rubbing my sleepy eyes.

"Hi – did I wake 'ya?"

"Yeah, but it's no biggie. What were you doing up?"

"Jared dropped by."

"Ah?"

"He told Sam he wasn't up for being your… bodyguard anymore." He sighed.

I don't blame him. Maybe it would've been different if we were friends, and had remotely anything in common, but I was a dull person.

"Sorry." I mumbled, not meeting his gaze. This made him sigh again.

"When are you going to stop apologizing for things that aren't your fault?"

I shrugged with a half-hearted smile.

He laid back down on the bed, though this time he didn't wear a shirt. Almost instinctively I cuddled up next to him. This made him laugh.

"You sure do like cuddling, don't cha?"

"Only with you."

He went silent.

"You know, you really shouldn't be saying stuff like that, or else you might give me the wrong idea."

"Oh well." I hummed, not letting his darkened mood dampen mine.

He chuckled, though it didn't seem humorous.

"What are we gonna do about school?" He asked, peaking down at me. I looked up, resting my chin on his chest.

"You're just going to have to trust me. I'll be safe, I promise."

"I completely trust you." He said truthfully. "It's _them_ I don't trust."

"You don't have to. Just put your trust in me because that's all I need."

"Okay…" he seemed defeated.

And in one swift movement, he leaned his head down and kissed me on the forehead.

"Goodnight." He whispered. It didn't take long for him to drift off to sleep, but I was now wide awake.

 _Okay,_ I thought to myself. _He definitely likes me._

The smile that spread across my face next was probably the brightest I had ever smiled.

* * *

AN: Sorry for the shortest chapter yet, but I felt like ending on that note seemed like the logical thing to do,,

We're finally getting somewhere, holy cow. The next chapter should be out pretty soon, as I actually already have most of it written (it was originally apart of this chapter, but like I said, ending right there seemed best).


	12. Fourteen Coins

_**Fourteen Coins**_

* * *

"We're going on a trip!"

I looked up from my plate of food to stare at the boy across the counter.

"Cool. Quick question though, how do you plan on paying for this trip?"

He put a bright grin on his face. "I won it!"

This immediately had me worried.

"Oh Paul… please don't tell me you gave some person your credit card number over the phone. How many times do I have to tell you, those are just scams!"

This seemed to make him giggle. "I'm only joking."

"About the trip?"

"No, 'bout the winning. My mom's been wanting me to visit for awhile, and she had bought tickets, but they're expiring pretty soon – _and_ , she even bought an extra ticket for my dad, but since he got work, you're coming in his place!"

"Who's to say I'm not busy?"

My mother poked her head in through the kitchen door. "Already called the school to tell them about your absence."

My face deadpanned. They must have planned this beforehand, obviously worried about me still attending school with vampires – who after three days still had yet to try anything. In fact, just yesterday Edward had given me a friendly smile when we walked by each other in the hallway. I truly thought that this stigma the council and pack had against the Cullens was ridiculous. Just because they're vampires, why shouldn't we give them the benefit of the doubt and believe that they mean no harm?

"Are you two in cahoots or something? Is this about the whole Cullen thing, because seriously, if it is-"

"It's not," Paul cut me off. "I just thought that you'd enjoy it – getting away from the rez that is."

As much as I wanted to believe that, I wouldn't doubt there was even the tiniest fraction in Paul that thought this was the perfect escape from my schooling.

"Well… I'm not one to look a gift horse in the mouth, so sure, why not."

Paul began cheering like a kid, and my mother could only laugh at the boy.

"When are we leaving?" I asked, swirling spaghetti around my fork before taking a bite.

"Early tomorrow morning."

I choked.

Soon enough, Paul was by my side with a hand on my back, but I brushed him off.

"I'm fine, really." I coughed out. "How do you expect me to get ready in less than twelve hours?"

"I'll help you."

"I've already bought you a suitcase as well." My mother said. I only sighed.

"You guys seriously have this planned out, don't you?"

They both smiled sheepishly.

I really didn't know what else to say – it was all so sudden. If I tried arguing about not wanting to go, I don't think Paul would try to force me, though he'd probably give me one of his horrible kicked-puppy faces for the rest of forever, and that alone had me wanting to just go along with it. Besides, maybe a trip away from La Push and Forks would be a good thing – to leave behind the supernatural for a bit.

There was a straight hour of packing – mainly me arguing about wanting to take books to study and Paul refusing to back anything but clothes.

"I promise you we'll be completely busy when were there, so you wont even have a chance to get any studying done." Paul said, tossing my photography book out and replacing it with a sweater.

"But I need to work on my project! Me and Angela are partners, and I won't be able to live with myself if I let her down on this." I said, picking the book back up and dropping it in the suitcase.

Paul glowered before sighing. "Okay, I'll tell 'ya what. When we get back, I'll help you research on that uh… pre-morty thingy,"

"Pre-morty thingy?"

"Whatever the f-… thing is called."

"It's Post-mortem, and I haven't done anything like that in months."

"Then what are you doing?"

"A research paper, but you know what, if I don't finish my part then I'll just tell Angela it was all your fault." I huffed, though quickly turned to the boy with a grin to show I was only joking.

Paul rolled his eyes. "Why are you even doing photography anyways?"

"Because I like it? Plus, I want to try and get a degree in it." I felt like I was stating the obvious.

The boy narrowed his eyes at me. "A degree? Wouldn't you have to like… go to a college with a photography program for that?"

"That's the plan."

I expected him to say something, but when silence lingered, I glanced back at him, shockingly enough he had an expression that looked gloom.

"What's wrong?" I asked, wondering what had cause the sullen look.

"I just never thought you'd really want to do that, I guess."

I raised a brow. "I'm pretty sure we've talked about this before. I've always been planning to go to college."

"Yeah, sure, sure. It's just… I just assumed you would stay here on the rez – maybe go to one of those like local colleges, that way we could still see each other every day."

I felt a sharp pain, as if he had just jabbed my heart with a knife. I knew that going to college would mean leaving Paul, and I damn sure hated that fact, but I felt like he would at least understand. It would be different if we were dating or something, but I didn't even know if Paul wanted to even do that despite how I was practically throwing myself on him, telling him to date me – metaphorically that is.

"I mean, you did say that you would follow me wherever I went – even to Antarctica." I reminded him. This seemed to brighten the mood, as he let out a light chuckle.

"Yeah, I guess I did say that. I don't think it'd be easy, though."

"How do you mean?" I asked, confused as to what would stop him.

"Well uh… I'm kind of in the pack."

"You could leave it."

"It's not something I can just leave, Seth. We're protectors, so we have to protect our home."

I wanted to say more, but something in the back of my mind reminded me that one day, it was quite possible for me to be in that pack, and that alone turned my stomach. Being bounded to La Push didn't seem like the most appealing thing in the world.

We let the subject drop.

"So," I said, zipping the packed suitcase closed. "what should I be expecting anyway?"

"What do you mean?" Paul asked.

"With the whole flying thing – I've never been on a plane before."

"Well there's not much to it really, it's like sitting in the same seat for forty minutes during class, only in this instance, your flying through the air in a metal contraption at deathly speeds."

"Sounds like a fun time," I grinned. "though, it is getting late, so we should hurry up and get some sleep."

I didn't get much sleep – the bags under my eyes showed that clearly. It was still pitch-black outside when we got up, though Paul didn't seem to mind it, as he bounced around my room all jolly-like, bringing all our stuff outside and into the back of the truck, and it couldn't have pissed me off more.

"Hey, Seth-"

"WHAT." I snapped, clearly showing just how grumpy I was.

"Wow, you really aren't a morning person," Paul laughed. "I'll tell 'ya what, I'll drive so you can get some sleep on the way to Port Angeles, 'kay?"

There was a moment of pouting on my part, before stiffly shuffling over to the boy to give him a hug. "Thank you." I mumbled into his shirt.

He kissed me on the head. "No problem."

That woke me up.

My mother came down the stairs to give us a hug goodbye, along with Leah surprisingly.

"And tell your mom I said hi!" She shouted from the front door, which Paul gave her a wave and a smile.

We hopped into the truck, and Paul roared the engine to life before turning the heaters on blast. I sat in the passenger seat, practically shivering to the bone. Paul gave me a look, gesturing me to come over to him.

"Oh right, radiator." I remembered, shifting over to the middle seat to buckle myself in, to which I then pressed my whole body into his side, feeling his warmth engulf me.

It was still pitch-black out, so the roads were relatively empty. We were driving for a good twenty minutes before I finally fell into a dreamless sleep, and the next thing I knew, I was being awoken by Paul, telling me we were there. I felt some relief, as I did feel much more rested. We got out of the truck and walked around to the back to haul the tailgate down. I felt a bit insulted that Paul only let me carry the small stuff, while he took both of our huge suitcases, and a backpack that he brought.

"You do realise I could've carried more, right?" I stated as we went through the revolving door into the airport.

"Seth, you do realise that this weighs practically nothing to me, _right?_ "

"Yeah, but still…" I couldn't help but feel somewhat guilty.

"You worry about the strangest things, you know that?" He looked down at me as we got in line for the luggage check.

"Sorry."

"Don't be sorry, it's cute." He smiled.

I could only gawk from behind at him as he strolled on forward.

He was making it obvious now. I was one-hundred percent sure that he liked me, so even more reason I question why he didn't just tell me yet. Was I supposed to tell him? Did he want me to say it? If anything, if he imprinted on me, he should be the one to say it, dammit.

After the luggage check, we still had half an hour to kill before we could even board, so Paul dragged me to a small coffee shop in the airport. The place was relatively packed, so Paul and I thought it would be best for me to save us a seat while he went up and ordered.

Now, I'm not usually one to get jealous, especially when I had no reason to be, but for a moment when I glanced up at the lineup Paul was in, I saw two girls chatting away to him – both clearly admiring.

While watching the scene unfold, I felt just the slightest bit of anger, and I glared at the two figures as they both continued talking – that is until Paul said something to them, and they both went partially wide-eyed. Paul then looked in my direction and pointed a finger at me. I sat up, confused at the gesture. The two girls then looked in my direction and gave a friendly smile and wave; I stiffly did the same. After the two girls got what they wanted, the left the lineup, and as they walked by me, I swear I could hear one of them say "It's always the cute ones who are gay."

This shocked me. For one thing, that completely confirmed that the girls were probably hitting on Paul, but even more shocking was the fact that Paul had straight up told him he liked guys. He told two complete strangers without any worry.

I could only aspire to have that much confidence.

He returned with two coffees, a bagel and a sandwich, and while I quickly thanked him, I couldn't help but confess to him;

"I wish I had your confidence." I said with a sigh, tearing a piece off the bagel and popping it in my mouth. He gave me an amused look.

"Whatcha mean?" He curiously asked.

"I overheard those girls talk about you telling them you liked guys."

He only shrugged. "It's no big deal. Believe me when I say I can be pretty damn cowardly at times."

"Bullshit. When have you ever?"

He shrugged again, though this time, he gave me a strange look.

The airport intercom announced that the flight from Port Angeles to Tacoma would soon be departing.

After walking through the metal detectors, we were then on our way to board, and that's when I felt a sudden rush of anxiousness overcome me. Paul seemed to notice this as well.

"What's wrong?" He seemed concerned.

"N-nothing. It's just uh…"

"What, are you nervous?"

"Kinda." I smiled, though it was forced.

"There's really nothing to be afraid of." He said pulling me into a side hug while rubbing my back.

"I know, I guess it's just because it's my first time."

"Don't be such a flying virgin." He teased, which had me immediately pushing him away with a mock-glare, though I couldn't help the smile that crept up on my face.

We soon boarded the plane, and as we walked down the isles of the plane, I quickly remembered something important.

"Oh god," I whispered to the boy walking in front of me. "are we even sitting together?"

It was my first time, so I didn't want to get stuck with a stranger, though Paul immediately calmed my worries when he showed me the seat numbers. He was Twenty-A and I was Twenty-B. When we found our row, Paul insisted that I have the window seat, saying that it was 'the best experience'. Whatever that 'experience' was, I was very sure that I probably wasn't going to enjoy it all too much. He then showed me how to work the tiny TV screen on the back headrest that each passenger had.

Overall, it was going well, and I was doing fine.

That is until, the plane started moving. My stomach started churning as we did what seemed to be loops around a runway, until the loops came to an end, and watched as the whole world outside the window became slanted. I had to look away for a moment, covering my mouth and pray that I didn't throw up. Paul took out a paper bag from the seat in front of him, ready to act if anything did happen. Though, after a good ten minutes, the churning stopped, and I was finally able to relax.

The first half of the forty-minute flight was just me trying my best not to think of the fact that at any moment we could crash, and the second half was spent with myself and Paul looking through a Skymall magazine, laughing at the absurd things that it advertised and the wacky pricing that came along with it.

I could only feel relief when a voice over the intercom announced we would soon be landing in the Seattle-Tacoma international airport.

Getting off the plane into unknown terrain felt bizarre, but in a strangely amazing way. It was exciting, and as we entered the airport, I couldn't help but gaze around with a goofy grin on my face.

"Oh wow…" I said in awe, taking in the magnificence of it all. Paul merely smiled down at me before taking one hand and dragging me to baggage claim. It took about twenty minutes to get all our stuff before leaving through the airport doors.

I noticed the slight pause Paul seemed to make when we got outside; his nostrils flared slightly, and his brow furrowed. He then quickly waved down a cab, and Paul so generously loaded our stuff in the back before we got in. He then told the cab driver to take us to someplace called 'fourteen coins', which I soon learned was a restaurant. Paul asked the cab driver to say put, saying he'll pay the extra fee.

As we sat down in a booth, a waiter came along to take our order. Paul of course ordered a disgusting amount of food, and I merely ordered a burger and fries.

"So, how are you enjoying Tacoma so far?" He asked, taking a sip of water.

"Considering we've only been here for about half an hour, it's really cool," I said truthfully. "this restaurant is really nice."

"They make the best burgers," Paul said excitedly. "I remember when I was little, I always use to beg my parents to come here."

This made me smile.

"When are we going to see your mom, anyway?"

"Well, she said she had to run some errands with Jackson, so were meeting them in an hour."

"Jackson?" I asked, slightly confused.

"Oh yeah, her fiancé."

I sat back in my seat, wide-eyed. "Since when did she have a fiancé?"

"About a few months now – they met sometime last year. Did I not tell you about that?"

"No."

"Huh," He shrugged. "Well don't be nervous about meeting him because I haven't either."

The waiter soon came around with our meals. Paul had ordered what looked to be about two plates of food, and even the waiter had a slightly disgusted face when Paul started digging in almost immediately.

We talked more about what we'd be doing for the next two days we planned to stay. Paul had a whole list of ideas, like visiting Owen Beach along with a trip to the local zoo and aquarium. He must have gone through a lot of work to prepare all this, so I felt slightly warm-hearted to know that he did it for me.

But that's just the way Paul was – always thinking about others before himself.

After we finished, we got back into the taxi that had been waiting for us, and then Paul once again told the driver to head to North End 48th street. It was about a thirty-minute drive, and the entire time I just gaze out at all the scenery, finding everything so beautiful. I felt as if though I were in another country, and the rising sun so bright in the sky merely added to that.

We eventually pulled up to the side of the road, overlooking a one-story home that was painted a beige color, with a huge lawn that was lined with large trees, almost blocking sight of the whole house. Paul paid for the ride, which had come to over a hundred dollars. I still hadn't the clue where he had gotten all the money from. As we were unloading our things, a figure came out through the now open door from the house, with what appeared to be a butter container in hand.

Paul's mother, Lily, looked the exact same since I last saw her, and that was probably a good five years before.

"Oh, there's my big man!" She said with joy, scurrying over to hug Paul. I immediately noticed the way Paul's face scrunched up, and his nostrils were flaring yet again. He tried to hide it right away by putting a huge smile on his face.

"Hi, mom." He said with just as much warmth as she did, though his voice shook slightly.

"And you," she turned to me. "Oh Seth, you've grown up so much!" She pulled me into a loving hug. I peaked over her shoulder at Paul, fully expecting him to be happy, but he was the exact opposite. He almost looked furious, his eyes darting around everywhere, searching for something.

"Well, I need to just run this thing of butter over to the neighbours right quick, so I'll see you both in a few." She winked, before skipping off to the house next door.

The next thing I knew was Paul had a death grip around my arm and pulling me towards the house.

"W-What the," I struggled, trying to break free. "What are you doing!"

"Get in the house." He commanded, pushing me towards the door.

"Paul, what's going on?"

He got up right close to me, his voice barely audible.

"Vampire."

My eyes went wide.

"W-what? What do you plan on doing?" I became scared, but not for myself, but from the fact that Paul might try to fight it – alone.

"I'm going to hunt it down and kill it."

"You can't be serious."

"Do I look like I'm kidding?" He asked me, showing just how serious he was.

"The rest of the pack isn't here!"

"I can do this by myself."

"Paul, just think about this!" I hissed at him, clearly distressed by the situation.

He took a step back, before his voice came out lower and more frightening then I have ever heard. "Get in side right now."

He had never used such a tone with be before, and even though I didn't want to, I found myself immediately backing up, before turning and retreating into the house. When I closed the door behind me, I turned to look through the window next to the door, only to see Paul had disappeared from the front yard.

My nerves were shot, and at that moment, I don't think there was a single thing that would've kept me calm. I began pacing back and forth in the little porch, counting the seconds that passed, deciding that if he didn't return within two minutes, I would head out and look for him.

That's when something caught my eye.

A figure had peaked in through the doorway. It was a man, and he looked confused.

"Um, hello… who are you exactly?" He asked me. I began questioning who the man was, though I remembered that Paul had said his mother was engaged, and I quickly put a name to the face.

"Oh, you must be Jackson!" I said, sounding as if I had just seen a ghost.

"That's right… and you are?"

"Oh, I-I'm Seth, Paul's friend."

His face lit up, the gears in his head finally shifting as he seemed to know who I was.

"Oh, right. Lily said Paul was bringing his friend. Well it's very nice to meet you, Seth." He said, sticking out his hand.

I went to shake it, though when my hand grazed his, I felt myself pull back slightly, as his skin seemed to be freezing.

"Oh, sorry," he laughed. "I had just been washing the dishes – we kind of ran out of hot water."

"Ah," I laughed, before reaching out yet again to give a firm shake.

At first glance, the man was quite handsome. His face looked perfectly sculped, and he had big blue eyes. He was pale though – almost unhealthily so. He looked so strangely familiar, but I couldn't exactly remember where I would've seen him before.

"Well, please come in and make yourself at home." He said gesturing past him. "Where is Paul to, anyways?"

I had completely forgot about Paul, and it had already been two minutes. I felt panic start to bubble up once again, though it completely erased when Paul came barging the front door.

"I looked everywhere around the area, but I couldn't seem to find-" He cut himself off when his hand shot up to his nose to pinch it, acting as if he smelt something horrible. And as his eyes shifted away from me, they landed onto Jackson before going wide.

For a second, he froze up.

"Why hello, Paul," Jackson said warmly, sticking out his hand. "I'm Jackson. It's very nice to meet you-"

Paul threw me back behind him, letting out a long and threatening growl. I could only gape at Paul, wondering what his problem was, growling at his mother's soon-to-be husband like some wild animal.

Like a defensive wolf.

And that's when it clicked. Jackson looked so familiar because I had seen him before – or well, I had seen his kind before.

He was a vampire.

Paul was shaking violently now – just like that time in my driveway – and I knew I had to do something before it was too late. I darted around the boy, taking his hands in my face.

"Paul, you have to calm down." I whispered. "You can't do this here. Please, please calm down."

I was begging him, though I feared that he saw Jackson as a threat to me, and nothing would get through to him; his shaking only worsened.

"Paul, it's just Jackson. It's Jackson, your mom's fiancé. Paul, you cannot do this here. Please, please don't do this."

He looked into my eyes, and the shaking suddenly stopped.

He then ripped open the front door and walked out, dragging me along. It was when we reached the end of the driveway that Lily returned.

"Paul, Seth, where are you two going-"

"Your husband is a disgusting bloodsucker." Paul said with so much venom.

This shocked her for a moment, before turning to an approaching Jackson with a worried look. "You told them?" She seemed upset, though not as upset as Paul looked.

Both me and Paul were taken back by this. She _knew_ her husband was a vampire. I stiffly shifted my head towards Paul, seeing how he looked beyond shocked. There was a beat of silence, and I was afraid Paul might explode with rage.

"Y-… You knew…?"

"I didn't tell them, actually." Jackson spoke in a calm and cool voice. "How did you know?" He asked Paul, sounding just as confused as I was about the whole situation, though still looking mighty defensive, as if Paul were some wild animal about to attack him. He wouldn't be wrong.

"Oh please, I could smell you the second I got out of the cab. Your kind all smell alike."

"H-How would you even know that?"

"BECAUSE I KILL YOUR KIND, YOU FILTHY LEECH!" Paul roared.

"Paul," I warned with an unsteady voice. "Please, just calm down…"

"Why the hell should I, Seth? Please, tell me why in the world I shouldn't kill this… _thing!_ "

Lily stepped in front of Jackson defensively, which only made Paul let out a hiss.

"Paul, what is the matter with you?" She demanded to know, looking quite frightened.

"What's the matter with me?" He asked disbelievingly. "What is the matter with _you_! How could you possibly be engaged to… to… a bloodsucker!" He stepped in their direction, and Jackson swiftly pulled Lily behind him before baring his teeth.

"Maybe you should leave." He spoke in a monotone voice, now looking threatening like an actual vampire.

"That's a good idea." I agreed, to which I turned to Paul. "Let's just take a walk to calm down, okay?"

"I don't need a walk-"

"Paul," I cut him off. "We are taking a walk."

Though proving difficult, I eventually pulled him away from the scene, and into the forests next to the house. Paul held my hand with such a tight grip that it felt like my bones were about to break, though I didn't speak up.

" _She's engaged a leech, she's engaged to a leech, she's engaged to a leech…"_ He kept repeating, as if he were trying to convince himself. He looked as if he had gone mad. It was scaring me.

It wasn't long before Paul let go of my hand, swinging his fist into a tree. To my surprise, the tree shook under the force, and when Paul's hand moved away, there was a large dent.

He stopped walking then; he merely dropped to the ground, clenching his face as he began shaking once again, only this time, I knew that there was no way I was going to be able to stop it. He was heavily panting, his teeth clenched so tightly and saliva flying out through the cracks. He seemed as if he were about to explode, so I put much space between us, and watched at a distance as the boy's spine let out one final shiver.

He then blew up into a humongous wolf.

I let out a gasp, taking in the process that had happened so swiftly. I recognized the wolf, as it was the dark silver one that had scared me so bad it made me fall off that hill.

Its dark eyes bore into mine.

"Paul?" I asked hesitantly, wondering if he could understand me.

He let out a big huff, slowly and cautiously pacing over to me, one paw at a time. When we became face to face, I could feel his hot breath hit me in rhythmic blows. It felt so bizarre – to be standing in front of the thing that only a month ago would've scared me shitless. I couldn't help but admire how beautiful Paul was in a way. His silver fur shining so majestically, his eyes that same chocolate brown color, and his body so incredibly massive. He truly looked like something that could kill a vampire in mere seconds.

Then, a gigantic tongue escaped through his lips and licked the whole side of my face in one motion.

"Oh, gross!" I complained, stumbling back a few steps. "Paul!"

He began letting out more huffing sounds, which I could only assume was the wolf version of laughing. I walked back over to him, lifting my hand slightly.

"Can I?" I asked. He let out a breath, so I took it as a yes.

I pressed my hand to his face, feeling the soft texture of his fur. Paul immediately began rubbing himself into my hand, which I then letting out a light laugh. He may have looked like a wolf, but he was acting like a puppy dog, craving my attention with much need.

He then took a few steps back before turning around and sitting down on all four paws. His head then turn around and looked at me before shifting towards his back. I knew what he was indicating, and my eyes only widened in response.

"You can't be serious."

He let out a low growl.

"Paul, is that even safe?

This time, he let out a long breath which I picked up as him sighing.

He wanted me to sit on his back, so he could do god knows what, and strangely enough, as time ticked by, I felt myself wanting to really try it, and _that_ seemed very, very stupid. I knew though that Paul wouldn't let me do anything if it meant putting myself in danger.

One hesitant step at a time, I walked over. As I stood next to him, I realised even when sitting down the way he had been, his head was still leveled with mine. In one quick move, I hopped onto his back, before quickly trying to balance myself out.

"Do I just… hold on to your fur?" I asked, which he then shook his wolf head up and down. He looked so silly doing the gesture.

I then did just that, feeling my hands rub into his fur before practically using a death grip. I wondered if I was in anyway hurting him, but he didn't even seem to even notice. He then swiftly rose off the ground. I felt myself yelp in response, and then we were off.

At first, I didn't even know what I was experiencing, as everything seemed to happen so fast. My mind then came to the realisation that we were running – at incredibly fast speeds for that matter. I was petrified for a good minute before I felt myself ease, to which I then found that I was quite enjoying the experience. It was truly amazing, though my grip on Paul's fur only got tighter. I watched as different shades of green zoomed on by me, everything in such an unfocused blur. We must've been going at speeds after than any race car. After a good minute, I felt myself laughing out loud, as I was simply exhilarated by what was happening. It was like something out of a movie.

A few minutes later, Paul eased down to a stop. His head looked back at me, and I couldn't help but give him a humungous grin.

"We so have to do that again!" I cheered.

He merely let out more wolf laughs.


	13. An Eternity

_**An Eternity**_

* * *

There have been many stressful points in my life – some so much so, that I wanted to completely forget about them – and as I sat on that couch with Paul next to me, I prayed that this would be a day I'd forget.

It was the second day on the trip to Tacoma. Paul _all_ day yesterday had been freaking out about the whole 'mother engaged to a vampire' thing – with very good reason of course – and we hadn't really done much besides the endless cycle in which Paul got so angry he phased into his wolf form, only for me to have to calm him down enough to revert back, only for him to phase once again.

It also came as a mighty shock that the first time he phased back, he was completely naked. That sure was a predicament.

That night we ended up staying at a motel I practically dragged Paul to. Apparently phasing takes up a lot of energy, and he phased so much that eventually he literally couldn't anymore. Luckily enough there was a payphone close by, so I dialed up a cab.

The next morning – after heavily convincing Paul – we returned to his mother's home. Paul had conditions though, and one of them was for Jackson to be out of the house. Paul and Lily then talked for hours, which at one point I eventually fell asleep on the couch in Lily's living room. When I awoke, Paul looked much calmer, though his expression was still hinted with fury, but the overall gloom on his face seemed to mask it well.

He had told his mother about everything. The Quileute legends, the pack, and the fact that he was a werewolf. She didn't seem at all freaked out though – which is understandable. After all, her fiancé _was_ a vampire.

Then Jackson returned, and all the progress Paul seemed to have made with the whole situation vanished. There was a lot of shouting – mainly Paul. Jackson merely stood back, taking it all in as if he were studying each word. Jackson apparently had never heard of werewolves existing, so that came as a surprise to him.

After a while, Paul said the smell was becoming unbearable, to which myself and Lily then went around the house to open all the windows. Jackson seemed to also find relief in this, as Paul seemed to smell like 'wet dog' to him.

The day had been beyond stressful. I gently rubbed Paul's arm, trying my best to keep him relatively calm while Lily and Jackson sat across from us.

"So, um," I was the first to break the lasting silence. "d-do you…" My eyes wouldn't meet Jackson's as the question escaped my lips. "Do you drink blood? L-like human… blood?"

"Technically, yes."

Paul let out a loud hissing sound, his eyes glossing over with rage and his teeth visibly clenching with a shaken rage. I couldn't help the thin line my lips formed into either, not liking the answer one bit.

"But I don't kill to get it." He then added.

 _He doesn't kill?_ I thought, as if such a thing were even possible.

"How do you mean?" I asked.

"Well, my occupation is at a local blood bank, so… I just drink from the blood bags – O-Positive of course. The universal donor. We never really seem to run out."

I made an "ah" sound as I sat back, acknowledging what he meant. "that… actually seems similar to the Cullens in a way." I said to Paul. His face turned from fury back to an icy cold gaze.

"The Cullens?" Jackson asked.

I was about to answer his question, but Paul surprisingly beat me to it, though he said it with much more venom then what I would have.

"The Cullens are a group of leeches who live in Forks. We can't kill them because of a treaty our ancestors made with them half a decade ago."

"What kind of treaty?" Jackson seemed to become quite interested in what was to be said, though Paul didn't seem keen to the idea of talking to the man any more than he had to.

"A treaty which prevents them from drinking human's blood under any circumstance." He said, though his voice was so flat with emotion – almost like a robotic answer. At least they were conversing.

"How would they resist drinking blood then?"

"They drink animal blood." I stepped in, noticing how Paul was becoming progressively annoyed by the oncoming questions.

"That's possible?" Jackson was wide-eyed, and now fully engrossed. "I've never heard such a thing."

"Apparently so."

"Animal blood… I bet it must taste very fresh..." He hummed, seeming quite happy with the thought, which only caused Paul to let out another threatening growl. It was incredible how terrifyingly animalistic he could sometimes be.

We relapsed back into an awkward silence. Out of all of us, Lily surprisingly seemed the calmest. We didn't speak of much else after that.

Jackson soon announced of his leaving, saying he had to head into work, which eased my sense of worry quite a bit – but not because I was afraid of the man or anything. I was just scared that Paul might somehow try to attack him and end up getting hurt. We spent the rest of the morning hanging around the house. Lily showed me a photo album she had of Paul throughout the years, so that was quite amusing to see.

It was when I was sitting at the tiny kitchen table, watching Lily cook up stew when she first spoke with me alone – Paul had been upstairs taking a shower.

"By the way Seth, I heard about what happened to your father," She glanced back at me. "I'm really sorry."

"It's alright," I gave a reassuring smile. "It was hard at first, but Paul definitely helped me through it."

This made her smile.

"You two seem very close." She casually said, stirring a wooden spoon into the pot. I glanced at her with a funny expression.

"I mean, of course we are – we _are_ best friends after all."

This seemed to amuse her.

"Seth, you don't have to hide it from me. I'm very okay with it, really." She gave me a warm smile, which only made me even more confused.

"Hide what exactly…?"

"The fact that you and Paul are dating."

I certainly wasn't expecting that, and I could tell that my reaction surprised the woman as well, with my eyes probably popping out of my head as I stared at her across the room, questioning why she would even think such a thing. Was I making my love for Paul too obvious? Is that why she said it? And even more so, if she could see it, why couldn't Paul?

"W-we... M… Me and Paul a-are not dating." My hauntingly scared voice stuttered out. I knew that my face looked practically horrified, and that was since it's possible Lily might tell her son about how head-over-heels I was for him.

"You aren't?" She asked, but as she said it, she wasn't looking at me. I turned my head behind where I sat to glance at a figure now standing in the kitchen doorframe. His gaze lingered on me, and he seemed so confused and… saddened. Quickly the expression flipped, and he had a crooked grin on his face.

"Mom, we definitely are _not_ dating. _Clearly_ I'm way out of Seth's league." Paul joked.

That stung, though he certainly wasn't wrong. He was so unimaginably out of my league that it was pathetic. I could only pray such a thing didn't matter to him.

"Oh, well my mistake." She said unfazed, though Paul seemed to give her the stink eye.

During dinner, Paul seemed quite excited about all the things he had planned for us, and I found myself getting pumped up as well, though the conversation before dinner was still chewing away at me. I felt as if I really weren't good enough for Paul, but that only had me wanting to tell the boy of my feelings. If anything, I just wanted to get things over with. I was tired of tiptoeing around, pretending to see Paul as a friend when he really was something more. I didn't know what my future held, but I just wanted him to be apart of it, and not just in a friend kind of way.

I decided then that I would work up the courage for what was to come. That was easy to do, though. After all, they were just words.

 _Actually_ telling him would be the hard part.

We left Lily's house around one, and while I expected us to be taking a cab to wherever we were headed to first on our fun day in the sun, Paul planned otherwise, as he led me into the same woods from yesterday.

"Uh, what are we doing exactly?" I raised a brow.

Paul didn't answer, and instead merely began taking off his shirt and pants.

"Oh, what the shit?" I asked, quickly turning my head away from the sight of him. I would be lying though if I said I didn't immediately glance back.

"If I phase with my clothes on, they'll get ripped to shreds. I like this shirt too much to see it go bye-bye." He shrugged before tossing me the shirt and jeans, though I hazily caught them as my mind had wandered off, wondering how in the hell he felt comfortable to be in a damp forest in just a pair of white briefs. A pair of very white, very fitting set of…

"Liking what you see?" Paul chimed in, his cocky grin plastered so wide onto his face as he had his arms gestured out to show off his body. And for an honest second, the embarrassment I should've felt was non-existent as I stared at his crotch with only one sentence on my mind.

"Wow, those anabolic steroids really did shrink up your junk, huh?"

And finally, for the first time in ever, I basked in the glory of watching that little smug smile wipe from his face as it was recast for a look of complete shock. For the first time in ever, that humungous ego of his was completely crushed.

And that's when I began laughing.

"You're so mean." Paul pouted, turning away and running deeper into the forest. After a moment, the laughs faded into chuckles as I began walking after him, only for him to re-emerge as a wolf.

He did the same thing as yesterday, sitting down onto his stomach as he gave me a look that said, "hop on".

"I mean, not that riding on your back isn't fun, but I thought you had a whole day of human stuff planned out for us?" I asked, kicking one leg over his back. He merely let out a grunt before we were on our way.

Apparently, the reason why Paul phased into a wolf was, so we wouldn't be late for the first activity on our list – a tour bus. I didn't want to sound ungrateful for the work he put into planning, but such a thing did make me question his idea of _fun_. Paul said that tour buses were "tons of fun!" and that it would give us a few hours of sight seeing while it slowly drove us to our next destination. He really did seem to have the whole day perfectly planned out.

The first bus stop came sooner than expected – we were going on a boat ride. I'd never been on a boat before, so that excited me to an extent, though at the same time was very worrisome.

"So, uh," I spoke up, clearly sounding a bit worried. "do we not get lifejackets?"

Paul looked almost entertained by my anxiousness. "No, Seth."

"Well what happens if the boat sinks! I don't know if I could …" I gazed at the shore, wanting to say what I was thinking out loud, because it was embarrassing to be my age and not be able to swim all that well. Paul knew that already, which made the situation more unbearable.

"Don't worry, lil' pup, we'll be just fine." He said, pulling me into a hug. I was surprised by how easily he was able to show affection with me in public, which to my benefit helped, as the embrace eased my nerves ever so slightly. "And besides, if it does sink, you can just hang off my back while we swim to shore." He whispered.

I smiled at this, though it quickly vanished as I caught a glimpse over Paul's shoulder. An old man was eyeing us, and his face didn't look too pleased by our close contact.

I know that I've had a relatively easy life – especially that of a native American. My family never had money problems, and I hadn't ever really run in to racism, as for all of my life, I've lived on the rez. Though, in saying that, I guess the whole reservation itself was birthed from racism and colonialization. I lived my entire life that way, so I often forgot about that.

But the thing between me and Paul – whatever that thing was – was prominent, and I had to peruse it. And I guess I hadn't really thought of it before, but if I did go down this path, there would be a long and tiring road filled with discrimination. Not everyone would be as accepting and nonchalant about it like those girls at the airport. Case in point, the old man giving us the stink-eye.

"Something wrong?" Paul asked, pulling away. Not wanting an _incident_ to occur, I merely shook my head and smiled.

"Nope."

Despite my crappy luck, the boat didn't sink after all. The ride was quite enjoyable, especially after the seasickness passed. Me practically heaving over the side of the boat was embarrassing, and I cursed my feeble stomach over and over. After docking, the tour bus had shown up, and ready to take passengers once again. We spent a good two hours sightseeing through the wonderous city and through Mount Rainier, and I couldn't have been more grateful, as me and Paul shared a small seat on the bus, and he had his arm casually wrapped around me along with his whole body lightly pushed into mine while he eagerly gazed out the window, pointing to different things and eagerly repeating my name with excitement. The amount of times my heart fluttered when he looked down at me with a big smile was exhilarating. Being within proximity of the boy made my day so much better, and that's what also had my nerves on haywire.

I was horribly nervous because, for all I knew, he didn't like me in a romantic way. And if he didn't, then that would make what I was going to tell him later all the harder. But I had to tell him, because for every second more he pressed into me, and the heat off his body engulfed me like a blanket, the more I was being smothered. I wanted to return those little smiles he constantly gave me. I wanted to return the little spontaneous acts of physical contact he always seemed to give me. I wanted to give him everything, though if I tried too, I feared what I would face was rejection. That's why I had to confront him and tell him about my feelings. I needed to get all this dead weight off my shoulders.

I was frightened to death that he would reject me, and then that would be it. We would stop being friends, and we would cut each other out from our lives. A life without Paul seemed miserable, but I couldn't keep going like this, so if a clean break would start the healing process, then that's just what I'll do.

But maybe a life without Paul wouldn't mean the end. It could mean that I could go to a college without the guilt of leaving him. I would be able to explore these new feelings I've seemed to develop with other guys – maybe even get a boyfriend here or there. But I knew it wouldn't be as harmless as water off a duck's back. If the ladder did happen, I feared it would take years of healing to even get over him.

"And, part two of our three-part day." Paul said in my ear. I merely questioned what he meant, before turning to glance out the window, to which an eye-grabbing sign caught my attention.

We were at a zoo and aquarium.

"Oh, wow." I said in surprise. I certainly didn't expect that. "I've never been to a zoo before… or an aquarium for that matter."

"I know," he smiled. "There's a lot of things you haven't done, huh virgin?"

"Oh, screw off." I playfully pushed him.

After exiting the bus, we made our way to the ticket booth, and Paul so generously insisted that he pay for the tickets. As much as I wanted to fight it, I damn well knew I couldn't afford the admission price. Which then brought back up the question on where Paul seems to get his money from. As far as I knew he didn't have a job.

"Are you excited?" Paul asked as we entered through the gates.

"Of course." I smiled.

The first thing we walked by was a humungous glass wall where there was a small crowd. Through the glass I could spot what looked to be a dolphin swimming freely around the tank. It acted so majestic and free, which was ironic considering it was anything but free.

We continued our journey around the park, stopping at each individual animal cage and fish tank. I saw all kinds of different creatures that I couldn't have possibly imagined seeing in my life. From lions to otters, they all looked incredible. Pictures in textbooks didn't do them justice.

Which only made the whole thing sadder.

"I can't imagine how horrible it feels to be trapped in cages like this." I whispered to the boy next to me.

"It's not too bad. At least they get to live a long life and never be in any danger, right?" He turned to me with a sympathetic face.

"Hmm…" I hummed, not completely convinced. "Well let's turn the tables, how would you feel if you were trapped in there – as a wolf that is."

"Hypothetically speaking? I would just smash through the cage like it was nothing." He said with a crooked grin.

"Okay… well let's say you couldn't do that. What if you had to live in there all your life, how would you feel?"

"Well, if you were there with me, I'm sure I'd be able to do it."

I turned to look at him with what I assumed was surprise.

He was always saying such sweet things to me as if they were nothing, and I couldn't wrap my mind around it. Maybe _he_ was the one being obvious with this whole romance thing, and I was simply being the dummy. Was I not making it obvious?

"You're so full of shit." I laughed, though almost instantly whispered cursed words at myself.

If what I had just said was anything to go by, then no, I was definitely not making it obvious. But I couldn't help it, that's just how I've always been with Paul.

We were approaching the small cafeteria when Paul turned to me.

"Hey, I gotta go… do business in the bathroom. Would you mind getting us food?" He asked.

"Oh, yeah sure."

"Perfect." He responded, reaching into his back pocket to fish out his wallet before tossing it to me.

"There's cash in that. Just get me whatever – and a lot of it." He added, shouting as he sprinted off to the bathroom.

"I could've paid!" I shouted back, though I knew it fell on deaf ears. With a hefty sigh, I made way to one of the food stands. I ordered both my own and Paul's meals. The cashier assumed that I was buying for a whole family, so I went along, not wanting to explain how my best friend had a blackhole for a stomach. When I opened Paul's wallet, I went to fish out some cash, though something had caught my eye. I immediately dismissed it, passing over the cash and taking my order to one of the empty two-seated tables. I placed down the bag full of food before taking my seat and going straight back to the wallet. When I opened it up, it caught my eye once again, and I slowly peeled up the piece of paper sticking out.

I recognised that it was a picture, and even more so, it was of me and Paul. It was the one that I had taken that day back on the beach. Paul had his arms wrapped around me with a big smile on his face, and I too wore a smile that seemed just as bright as his. The emotion I felt knowing that he kept this picture with him all the time was overwhelming, but it wasn't until I flipped the picture over that I stopped breathing completely.

It was just words written in a red marker.

 _Me and Seth_.

But that wasn't the shocking part though. What was shocking was the fact that there was a tiny – and kind of badly drawn – heart next to our names.

And if that wasn't enough conformation, then I would've been a complete dumbass.

Paul liked me. I was one-hundred percent positive he liked me in the most romantic way possible, and the longer I stared at the words, the more I felt myself becoming more on the verge of jumping with joy. But the question still stood.

 _Why hasn't he told me yet?_

If he liked me, that means he clearly imprinted on me, so that means we were practically destined to be together. So, what gives?

I didn't have much time to think about it as the man himself was approaching where I sat. I quickly stuffed the picture back in the wallet and placed it down on the table.

"Hey, what'd you get us?" He asked.

"J-just uh, just a few b-burgers and fries for you. I also got fries." I mentally wanted to scream. I was acting like a stuttering idiot. I didn't realise how badly my hands were shaking either – or the rest of my body for that matter.

Paul caught onto this and his brow furrowed. "You cold?"

"N-not really."

He rolled his eyes, before shaking out of his jacket. He then walked around and plopped it down onto my shoulders.

"Thanks." I mumbled, not looking him in the eye.

"No prob, lil' pup."

We ate our meal in silence. Paul probably thought nothing of it, but I did. I was more nervous than I ever had been in my entire life. I had to tell him that I liked him. There was absolutely no chickening out for this once in a lifetime thing.

After our meal, we wandered around the zoo for a little while more, though Paul soon led me away from the scene. We walked out of the gates and made a left. He said something about this being "Part three", and as I wondered what activity would be next, praying it wasn't something strenuous, as I didn't think I had much energy left in me.

What Paul led me to was a beach – a beautiful one at that.

"And welcome to Owen beach." Paul announced, gesturing with his arms.

"Wow…" I breathed, looking across the lake, seeing different islands and taking what was quite possibly the most beautiful sunset I've seen, though maybe it was just my mind playing tricks, as I subconsciously wanted this moment to be perfect.

"Yeah, I came here with my parents a lot as a kid." He then let out a laugh. "I always remembered thinking, 'I wondered if Seth would like this as much as the La Push beach.'" He then turned to me with a soft gaze. "Well?"

I looked at him with an aching heart. "It's beautiful."

He looked at me for a long moment with the most genuine smile I'd seen on him. "Yeah… It is."

We gazed at each other for what felt like an hour, and with each passing second, I knew what was coming. "Water off a duck's back." I mumbled to myself.

"Paul." I said, my voice not faltering in the slightest.

"Yeah?" He asked, his eyes lighting up ever so slightly.

I took a deep breath, before finally letting it out.

"I love you."

And if looking into each others' eyes seemed like a mere hour, the next few seconds after I said those three words felt like an eternity.

Everything seemed to stop, but I knew that my mind had just gone into overdrive, thinking of every single outcome that this could possibly go. And out off all the ways I thought of, Paul said the one thing I wouldn't've expected.

"I know." His voice came out like a whisper.

My racing mind seemed to come to a full stop, and after seconds of dead air, I was completely and utterly confused.

"You did?" I asked, my voice now back to shaky.

"Of course!" He said, before walking up. He gazed down with an expression so full of love that it made me feel weak. "I love you too. You're my best friend."

 _Oh shit,_ I thought to myself. Well that was my fault for not being clearer.

"N-no, Paul. I… Like, I-I'm _in_ love with you."

I looked down at the ground as I said those words, as I was too scared and embarrassed to look at him in the face. Moments passed, and nothing was said. When my eyes shifted back upwards, I was met with a face of complete shock.

"W-what did you just say?" He asked, though his tone sounded more hard than questioning.

"I-I…" Now I was scared. He didn't seem happily surprised. He didn't even seem confused. He just looked like stone – so cold and hard.

"Did you just say… you're in _love_ with me?"

"Yes..." I mumbled, unable to take my eyes off the expression he wore. "Do you… love me?"

The marbled face he wore slowly melted into shock once again. Time no longer was evident at that moment, as every passing breath felt like forever. I didn't even know how long we've been standing there on the beach. Paul tried mouthing words, but nothing seemed to come out, until finally he let out a ragged breath.

"No."

My heart had only been crushed twice in my life. The first was that day back on the beach when Paul had ended our friendship, and the second was also on the beach, where Paul and I sat in my truck as he told me the news that my father was dead, so it was pretty ironic for it to once again happen on a beach, and neither of the other two times compared to right now.

I was so close to breaking, but I didn't let myself. I didn't want to show weakness in front of him. I didn't want him to feel any guilt. So instead I silently nodded, before turning my body towards the ocean.

Everything that I thought to be true suddenly turned out incorrect, and there were no words to even describe how crushed I felt. The weight on my shoulders had shattered, and shards cut into me so deep I felt as if though I were somehow bleeding. I was so confused. I thought that that picture in his wallet finally proved how much he loved me, but I guess I'd been misjudging what kind of love that really was.

"But hey," He spoke up in a hopeful voice. "We can still be best friends, right?"

"Who did you imprint on?" I asked him, ignoring the question. My voice sounded so drained… so dead.

It took him a minute to process my question. "What?"

I turned my head to the boy. "I know you imprinted on someone – I read it in your journal. Leah already told me what imprinting is, and I know Sam imprinted on Emily. So, I want to know who you imprinted on."

He looked to be shaking now, but not in a way that it looked like he was about to phase, but more like quivering.

"Don't make me say it." He whispered with a voice that sounded on the verge of tears.

And once again, I was confused.

"Who?" I asked again, though this time turning my full attention towards him. He looked at me with such a scared expression, as if answering such a question would somehow destroy him.

Scared soon turned angered, and he gave me a cold glare while his shaking only seemed to worsen. " _You damn well know who._ " He hissed out.

My eyes widened, as all I could do was look at him with an expression of pure bewilderment. "N-no… I really don't know who. Who is it, Paul?" I asked, approaching him with an outdrawn hand. He sheered away from it, as if my touch would somehow burn him.

"Seth, are you that much of a moron? Are you actually _this_ oblivious?"

The question has shocked me, but slowly I became aggravated.

"Excuse me?" I asked, not appreciating his disdainful tone.

"I imprinted on you." He said as if he were stating the obvious, which had taken me back.

Was he joking? I honestly couldn't tell anymore. The more time passed, the more everything seemed to not make sense.

"I-I don't understand what's happening." I said truthfully. "You imprinted on me?"

"Yes!" he said, flinging his arms up in exasperation.

"Wait so, you imprinted on me, but you aren't in love with me?" I asked, trying to make sense of all of it.

"I… _SHIT."_ He cursed, viciously gripping his head while he clenched his eyes shut. "Why are you trying to ruin this?" He whined.

"Ruin what!"

"This! Us! Christ, Seth I just…" He seemed to be at a loss for words. "Seth, I'm so unbelievably in love with you."

My eyes widened, and I felt my heart skip. But the moment of happiness didn't last long, as I only continued my line of questioning.

"Then why did you say you weren't?"

"Because…. Because…." He stopped, before crouching down, his hands covering his eyes. I watched, and as seconds past, the only thing that came from the boy was quiet sobs. I gaped at the scene before me. I knew I had to do something. I had to comfort him at least, so I crouched down next to him and wrapped my fingers around his wrists.

"Paul, look at me." I whispered. He didn't seem to want to cooperate, so I asked again. "Please, Paul, look at me and tell me what's wrong."

Slowly but surely, he looked up, and his bloodshot, tear-filled eyes bore into mine.

"I just don't want to mess this up." He whimpered.

"Mess what up?"

"Us. I mean, you love me, and I love you, but what if one day – for some reason – you don't love me anymore? I just… I can't live without you, Seth. I can't."

"And you're not going to have to." I said with a light laugh. "Paul if we do this, I'm in it for the long run."

"You don't know that for sure." He sniffled.

"Yes, I really do." I confessed. "I dunno, I guess… I guess I always knew that I wanted to be with you for the rest of my life, but it wasn't until a couple months ago that I really accepted it. Hell, I spent a straight month trying to find out what was going on with you and why you stopped being friends with me. I was so determined to get you back.

"When you finally did come back, I knew that I couldn't let you go. I couldn't let you slip away again, and that's when I accepted that I was unconditionally and irrevocably in love with you."

I waited for him to take in my words, and to try and think of a response, but as his two hands slowly rose towards me, they held my face steady, and I knew what was coming.

"Can I?" He asked.

"Yes." I responded.

And then he drew his face close to mine, and we kissed.

* * *

 **AN: Aaaa, sorry this took almost TWO months to post. I've honestly been really worried with how this chapter would turn out, so i think subconsciously i was putting off working on it, so I hope it wasn't a hot steaming pile of trash to read.**

 **THEY FINALLY KISSED oh how i dreamed of this moment. When I was writing the very end, I actually sat back in my chair and smiled because of how happy it made me, so that was funny.**

 **THANK YOU so much everyone for continuing to read this story. I always smile every time I get messages from y'all telling me to update quicker because y'all enjoy it so much. It really does mean the world to me.**


	14. Project

_**Project**_

* * *

The rest of the weekend seemed to fly on by in a blur. Paul didn't once show any aggression or sign of resentment towards Jackson. _Maybe_ he was thinking it, but the only thing his face visualized was pure joy. Of course, I was the same. Even as we packed our bags to head back to the airport, everything seemed so unreal – not even like a dream. It just didn't feel real.

How on earth could I possibly feel this ecstatic? It felt bizarre. Paul's mother noticed this of course, though I haven't the idea if she had guessed what was going on. I prayed she remained in the dark, as the motherly embarrassment I was going to get from my mother alone was bad enough. And, it's not like she's not going to eventually find out about us, as when Paul phases into a wolf, I doubt he'll be able to keep his thoughts away from the pack. I prayed everyone remained oblivious to our now awakened… relationship – the thought of which sent a shiver down my spine at the word alone.

I was in a romantic relationship with Paul, and it felt amazing.

But I still hoped to some degree that both Paul and I could celebrate this alone for a while.

"Oh, how I'm going to miss my big baby!" Lily said, pinching Paul's cheeks to the point of turning red.

"Mom, please," Paul whined. "Not in front of the vampire."

I let out a chuckle, though immediately tried covering it with a cough. Jackson seemed to find it amusing too as he stood in the kitchen doorframe. Lily of course didn't find any humor at it, and when Paul gave her a brilliant smile, she merely rolled her eyes.

Paul and Jackson were… on terms that I couldn't really describe with words other than Paul not wanting to _kill_ the man. It was something I guess.

"And I hope to see you again soon too, Seth." Lily said while embracing me in a motherly hug. I of course returned it, and Lily then whispered in my ear. "You take care of this goof, alright?"

"Yeah… Yeah, I will." I couldn't help but smile as I said it.

We left the household at noon, and soon enough we were in a taxi heading to the airport. Most of the trip we were silent, simply enjoying each other's company and feeling at peace after those hectic few days. Paul then closed the plastic panel that separated us from the driver.

"Did you have a good weekend?" He asked, stretching his arm around my shoulder.

"I really did." I replied. "Not so much the vampire-werewolf fighting, but the rest of it will certainly be something to remember."

"Oh yeah?" He looked down at me with a toothy grin, before leaning closer and sealing our lips. When he moved his face away, his smile seemed even brighter than before. "I'm definitely gonna remember yesterday, till the day I die."

I smiled from the sincere statement, though something seemed to flicker in my mind.

"So, um… theoretically speaking… how are you able to like… _die?_ " The thought alone made me feel queasy.

"What do you mean?" He gave me a questioned look.

"Um, I know in fiction werewolves are like suppose to be immortal or something, right… so are you like that as well?"

He sat back in the seat, thinking about how to answer my question.

"I mean yeah, I guess that's true." He shrugged. "I'm biologically the same age as I was when I first phased."

"So… when I'm sixty, you're still going to be seventeen?"

He merely shook his head. "Depends."

"On what?"

"Depends on if you're going to phase into a wolf like me."

Oh right, how could I forget about the possibility of me becoming a gigantic werewolf.

"But," Paul spoke again. "if you never do phase, then I'm going to stop phasing, so I can start aging again."

"But that would mean you'd have to leave the pack. I thought that wasn't an option?"

"It wasn't when we weren't together. But now-" He picked up my hand in my own. "my top priority is you and only you."

I gave him a soft smile, before leaning up to kiss him once again – something I would never get tired of.

"Well let's hope I phase soon then." I sighed, though for some reason, this seemed to set off Paul, as he looked at me with sudden shock.

"Why would you hope for such a thing?" He asked, seeming completely baffled.

"Well, because then I could be with you forever."

His eyes narrowed in a way that seemed very unhappy with my response. He looked like he was trying to find words to say, but after a minute of dead air, he merely leaned back in his seat, keeping his lips pressed together. It was clear that for whatever reason, Paul didn't want to speak more on the subject, and not wanting to poke the bear anymore, I did the same.

After arriving to the airport, I said my farewells to Tacoma. It was… a very strange experience, but I wouldn't've change any of it. Okay, maybe I would rather Paul's mother not be engaged to a vampire, so I could've been a bit more relaxed during my stay, but what can you do?

I slept on the flight back to Port Angeles. I woke up a bit before landing and while resting my head against Paul's shoulder, I felt a heavy weight on top of me, only to realise that it was Paul resting on me. To say that I didn't enjoy closing my eyes once again and cuddling into the boy would be a big lie. Eventually we landed though, and I had to wake the sleeping giant.

It was already three in the afternoon, so we quickly retrieved our luggage and headed out of the airport to my parked truck.

"It feels so strange to be back." I hummed, buckling myself into the passenger seat.

"Yup." Paul agreed. "You gonna miss the big city?"

"Kinda." I smiled.

"You think you might wanna go to college there?"

"I don't know. I mean, if you came with me-" I side-eyed him a hopeful look. "then I'd definitely consider it."

Paul roared the engine to life. "To Antarctica and back if you want me to."

I chuckled at the mental image of us in Antarctica – myself in a big winter coat and Paul probably wearing nothing like usual.

The drive back to La Push was entertaining, as Paul and I talked on and on about how everyone was going to react when they found out the eventual news of us. Paul had informed me that my mother already knew of the imprint, which kind of explained why she turned so many blind eyes towards our delinquent behavior. The fact that she and everyone else knew about the imprint before me was strange.

"So, is everyone like… okay with it?" I asked Paul.

"You're gonna have to be a bit more specific, lil' pup."

"The imprint."

"Oh…" He seemed to understand, though he stayed silent for a moment, probably thinking about how to answer. "I mean the general consensus seems to be a-okay. It did give everyone quite the shock though."

"Oh yeah?"

"Yup. Never has happened in the history of the wolves – a wolf imprinting on another male that is – which completely eradicated Sam's theory on why imprinting exists."

"What would that be?"

"He had thought that imprinting existed for purely biological reasons, which would be for… i-intercourse and stuff." He went very quiet on the end.

I couldn't help the amused grin on my face. "Are you seriously getting flustered over talking about sex?"

"I'm not flustered!" He said, face looking clearly flustered on the subject at hand.

"Oh, you totally are! What happened to mister macho man Paul, the guy who went around acting like mister Playboy in school?"

"I…" He sighed. "I don't know… I g-guess it's just… you know, it's… you."

"It's me?" I raised a brow.

"Yeah." He paused, looking as though he were trying to gather the right words to say. "You always have been my best friend, so the thought of doing… intimate stuff is embarrassing."

I tried suppressing a smile, though Paul caught it and clearly wasn't pleased.

"You're laughing."

"I'm not laughing." I was now suppressing the laughter.

"You're clearly laughing." He rolled his eyes, though seeming amused by the situation as well.

"Well, lets take things slow for now, yeah? So we can both adjust to this." I said while holding the hand that was placed in his lap. He gave me a sincere smile.

I never really expected Paul to be so nervous about the whole thing. I mean, we _were_ taking a huge step, and the sudden dynamic shift in our once purely platonic relationship was certainly something that needed adjusting to. But more so, I only felt that way towards the big things, like the discussion that was just at hand. Me and Paul were already used to doing so many couple things that most 'best friends' would never do, like holding hands and sleeping in the same bed. Hell, the list went on, and as I gave it more thought, the stupider I felt. How I went so long without picking up all those clues was beyond me. Maybe it was needed to somehow progress the story of my life.

By the time we pulled into the driveway of my home and open the doors of the truck, my mother was already out, running over to hug us – Paul first of course, because it's not like I was her biological son or anything.

It was when we were in my bedroom, packing away my clothes that I noticed something strange.

"What are you doing?" I asked the boy, watching him take a few articles of clothing to put into my closet.

"What? I figured since I'm here all the time I might as well put some spare clothes here."

"Wow, we haven't even _done it_ yet you're already moving in."

This earned me a bawled-up shirt to the face. I stuck my tongue out at Paul before tossing it back to him.

"How come we're only one day into our relationship and all you can think about is sex?" He hummed, packing away another piece of clothing.

"Oh Jesus…" A voice spoke up, but it wasn't me or Paul. I swiftly turned my head to the door which was now cracked open with Leah standing in front of it.

I could only gape at her, wondering how much of the conversation she had heard.

"Relax dingus, I already know about the imprint." She said uncaring. I wasn't surprised by this of course, but it still felt weird.

"What do you want, Leah?" Paul asked in a monotone voice.

"Sam scheduled a pack meeting at the city council office tomorrow evening. _Everyone_ is required to be there."

"Even me?" I asked.

"Are you a werewolf?" She dumbly asked like an asshole.

This put a sour look on my face. "No…"

"Then no." She then took her leave, clicking the door shut behind her.

"Well that's just great," I said exasperated. "She's gonna tell everyone!"

"Is it a bad thing, though?" Paul asked.

"Are you looking forward to multi-hour, multi-session talks about safe sex with Sue Clearwater?"

Paul's face turned worrisome.

"…I'll talk to Leah."

"I think that would be best." I sighed.

I sat on my bed, papers sprawled out in every direction. Paul had left to go back home to see his dad a few hours ago, and I was now trying my absolute hardest to stay one-hundred percent focused on the project I had to finish that was due tomorrow.

It took a good bit of searching through the phonebook, and a few miscalls, but I managed to track down Angela's home number. Her mother answered first, and I courteously introduced myself before she passed the phone off to Angela. She and I had gone over the project together one last time. I bended the truth a bit, telling her I had completely forgotten about finishing up what I had left with my part, and she was very gracious in helping me out for a bit. She then had to go – something about having to hand write her high school graduation announcements.

That's when it hit me.

This was Paul's graduating year too. I guessed that wasn't going to happen now, sadly. Though, maybe I could convince him to return with me in the fall for senior year…

I finished up the project at ten. I managed to stuff all the work into my backpack without bending or ripping anything. I was getting tired, so I decided to take a quick shower before heading down into the kitchen for a snack. I had only realized then that I hadn't eaten anything since we got back. Before I knew it, I was scarfing down a plate full of bacon, eggs, and toast. I figured if I ate now I wouldn't need to in the morning; maybe even sleep in a little bit. I downed a glass of orange juice in one big gulp, then put all my dishes in the sink and heading back up into the cozy confines of my bed.

I expected to wake up with my boyfriend next to me in bed – I loved calling Paul that. I glanced around, feeling relatively cold. If I had known he wasn't going come back, I would've probably turned up my heat. Nonetheless, I flung my legs out over the bed and stood on the cool floor.

Outside was – like always – gloomy. The place where the sun never touched. Going from Tacoma weather to this was kind of depressing. Hopefully the sky would be clearer in Forks. I got changed out of my sleep wear and into something half-warm. It was approaching the middle of May already, so it was kind of irritating that it didn't seem like it.

I was in a good mood though, despite my pessimistic thoughts. Just a tad nervous sure, but I was always nervous on presentation days. I just prayed that Angela and I would get a good mark for her sake. Afterall, she was the one graduating, so it mattered more to her.

Strangely enough, I got breakfast anyway, as I did feel hungry again. Before opening the fridge, my eyes scanned the calendar on it, noticing how today would be one of the days I would be filling in for my mom at the convenience store. I _had_ been looking forward to spending that time with Paul, but I quickly remembered he had a council meeting anyway, so at least working would pass the time.

I was out the door by seven 7:40. Earlier than needed, but since photography was first period, I didn't want to risk it.

While driving down the long, traffic-less road to Forks, I thought in scrutiny about all the topics _I_ would have to cover for my speaking portion. I strangely felt confident about it too, which was a welcoming change from past times where I had to do public speaking. Most of them didn't go too great; I would always get a good mark on the project, but I'd almost always do horrible on the speaking.

And of course, as if it wasn't already a running theme, my foot slammed on the break. Unlike those other times, nothing had jumped out. But there was something wrong – _very_ wrong. My gut was warning me – as if it were some sort of sixth sense.

And in a split second, something jumped out from the woods, but it wasn't an animal. If I hadn't been paying deathly close attention, I probably wouldn't even have seen it. But I did. It was a blur of orange so hauntingly familiar, and it leaped over the road to the shelter of the other side of the forest. I stared at the spot it had disappeared into. It wasn't over, as I _heard_ them. I recognized the footsteps, so gracefully soft yet rough and loud at the same time, just like on that hiking path.

The first one shot out – the _black_ one. And as fast as the orange blur did, he zoomed on by. Despite how fast he was going I was able to see him clearly, probably from how familiar I was with him. The rest of them soon followed, one by one shooting out from one side and racing back into the other side of the woods. My heart was racing, and I was now waiting for _him_ , and when he finally showed himself, he jumped out with his dark silver fur. He was the only one who stopped, his whole body practically blocking my side of the road. His long eyes looked at me with whatever emotion he was feeling. Probably nothing good though, as I knew I only expressed pure shock. There was a moment of stillness, to which he then nodded his large head once before taking off on the others' trail.

I let out a breath, eyes probably budging out of my skull. At least now I knew why he didn't show last night. He was chasing something, and I knew exactly what it was.

I don't know how long I blanked out staring at my dashboard, but eventually I heard a honk behind me, and I investigated my rear-view to see a car waiting for me to move. I pushed on the gas once more and made way to the high school.

It was the perfect way to start presentation day. It was bad enough I was already nervous before hand, but now I had to deal with the fact of knowing Paul was currently chasing a vampire through the woods. He had told me it was safe, and I already knew that this was what they did, but to see it for yourself was something else. Not only did I feel waves upon waves of anxiety, but I also felt sick because of it.

I parked in the school lot, my hands gripping the wheel and my lips pressed as I tried my hardest to keep myself together. My stiff arm and visibly shaking hand reached over for my bag, and despite not wanting to, it was already 8:20, so I opened the door and got out, so I wouldn't be late. I tried walking, though my legs kept buckling, and as I got to the edge of the vehicle I had to stop, as it was all becoming too much.

Was I _actually_ about to have a panic attack in the middle of the parking lot?

I was breathing hard, and I leaned into my arms which rested on the box of the truck, shutting my eyes and praying to any god out there that I could just calm down. I tried thinking of peaceful things, like lying in bed with Paul, but all of it just went to the back of my mind as my brain could only focus on Paul possibly being in danger from a lethal vampire.

That's when I threw up.

After feeling it all come out, the heaving stopped and I coughed a few times. I felt a hand on my back, though I didn't look up to check who it was; I was too embarrassed to.

"Seth?" A gentle voice asked. I peaked my eyes out over my arm to see Angela next to me along with a few of her friends. _How humiliating_ , I thought.

"Hi…" I managed to get out.

"You really don't seem well." She said worried. I got a better view of the people who were with her. Ben of course, along with a red-head girl, that blond guy who's name I remembered was Mike, Edward Cullen, and another girl who I also remembered to be a Cullen.

"That obvious?" I asked with a sense of humor. Though worried, this did seem to put a slight smile on her face.

"Maybe you should go home and get some rest, yeah?"

"But the project, I can't-"

"Hey," She cut me off. "It's alright, really. I'm sure Ms. Cherny will let us present another time. Go home and get better, okay?"

I looked at her in defeat. "Yeah… yeah okay. Thanks, Angela."

"It's no problem, Seth." She gave me a smile. "Are you sure you'll able to drive back home yourself?"

"I'll be fine." I assured her.

I then got to look at the people behind her, everyone showing relatively sympathetic faces – except for Edward. His jaw was locked tight and was staring at me. Both Angela and Ben said their farewells, before taking off with their friends, but Edward remained by my truck along with his sibling.

"The wolves are chasing Victoria." Edward said quietly, probably not wanting me to hear, but I managed to anyway. His voice was so unexpectedly pleasant to hear, but there was a tightness to it. I was shocked, not by his voice though, but by the fact that he somehow knew about what happened. I realised he was talking about the pack.

"H-How'd you know that…" I asked without thinking. The two figures looked at me, and I almost wanted to cringe away.

Edward didn't answer me though. "Alice, call Carlisle, make sure they're at the border just in case she crosses over." He said, though the girl – who I assumed was Alice – already had a cell in hand. The two figures immediately began pacing quickly back to their car, and I could only stare after them like an idiot. They sped out of the lot _way_ over the speed limit.

They were so mysterious. They _were_ vampires though, so maybe that was just apart of the gig. I walked over to the driver's side of the truck again and hopped in, wondering how Edward knew about what the pack was doing. Maybe they all kept in contact? No, that wouldn't be possible. I was sure the pack hated the Cullen's. But what could it have been?

I waited for a bit before starting the engine. I still wasn't feeling to well, and the more I thought on the reason for my sudden sickness, the worse I got. So, I thought about the Cullens – specifically what Edward had said.

 _The wolves are chasing Victoria._

Victoria… Was that the name of the vampire the pack was chasing? And the Cullens already seemed to know of her, and from the way Edward spoke of it, he didn't seem too fond of this Victoria either. That _or_ he wasn't fond of the pack…

Maybe both.

When I did get back home safe and sound, I couldn't help but think that I just spent a whole hour of driving just to throw up and have a panic attack over Paul. When I got back into the house I dropped my bag by the door and flopped down onto the couch, trying to let go of all the built-up tension in me.

I know that he had already told me this is what they all do but seeing it in person was completely different from hearing about it. I had to mentally thank Angela again, as I knew that if I had stayed in school I would've went crazy. I spent the remainder of the morning cleaning everything in sight. I had to keep my mind busy, or else I know I would end up doing something stupid in desperation.

As I wiped down the counters for the third time, my thoughts wandered to Edward and his sister. They told their family to meet at the border, but why? Why did this Victoria person seem so important? I assumed that she wasn't like the Cullens, which only meant that she… My hand froze as I was reminded of the 'bear' attacks that had been happening all over town…

She was the bear.

"Oh shit..." I groaned out.

My knees began to buckle again as it felt like all the blood in my body was gone, and I began to feel sick again. This Victoria _was_ a vampire, and she was the one killing people.

 _Was she the one who killed my dad?_ The thought alone had me heaving into the garbage bucket once again to let out the rest of the breakfast I had this morning. My nerves were gone haywire, and I visibly looked like shit. I couldn't do anymore cleaning. I didn't _want_ to, so I retrieved a blanket from the closet and lid down on the couch, trying not to think of what happened to my dad or what _could_ happen to Paul. I shut my eyes from the world, trying to think of nothing, and falling into a restless sleep.

By the time my eyes cracked back open, the front door to the house closed, and I looked over to see Paul standing in the doorway.

"Hey, what are you doing home so-"

He was cut off by me jumping up from the couch and sprinting over to pull him into an embrace.

"Whoa, easy there Sethy. You get a few kisses and now you're all over me?" He joked.

"Shut up, dummy." I said with a shaky voice. He seemed to notice this, and he pulled my face away from the crook of his neck.

"Hey, what's wrong with my lil' pup?" He asked, concerned as to why I was acting strange.

"Um," I didn't know what to say – I was just too grateful to be in his arms. "When I saw you guys this morning chasing…"

"Ahh…" He seemed to understand. "Don't worry, we're all just fine, I promise."

"I know that now." I said with a sigh, poking my head back into his neck.

We remained like that for a few minutes, just enjoying each other's company. It really was amazing how all my worries seemed to disappear when I was with him. I could just let everything go, only hearing his steady heart beat and breathing.

We didn't do too much the whole afternoon, just enjoyed each other's company while watching some TV. After such a hectic weekend, it was nice to just relax and do nothing.

"So, where are we gonna go on our first date?" Paul asked, looking down as I cuddled into his side.

I raised a brow. "First date, huh… Is it going to be like the movies where you take me to some romantic restaurant? Tip the waiter for the best table in the house… maybe serenade me?" I was smiling now, clearly amused by my own joke.

"It can be all of that and more – _if you want it_." He added.

"Hmm, as awfully good as that sounds, it might get pricy."

"I got all of the money in the world for you, lil' pup." He leaned in to nibble on my ear.

"You're wolf side is coming out."

"It's because you're making it." He grinned devilishly.

I rolled my eyes. "Where are you getting all this money anyways? You must've spent at least five hundred dollars this weekend."

"I get paid for hunting the baddies."

I looked up at him, probably looking somewhat questioning.

"Seriously?"

"Yeah," He said, shifting on the couch to let us both be more comfortable. "I'm not an… _average_ teenager, but I still gotta make some cash, right?"

"So, you're on the council's payroll?"

"Yup."

"Huh… well at least there's some benefit for putting your life on the line… B-Besides saving innocent people, that is."

He chuckled lightly. "Getting paid to help people, that's the kind of job I think I've always wanted. Maybe not in the way I'm doing it now, but it's something I guess."

"Really?" I questioned. "How come this is the first time I've heard of this?"

"I don't know. I mean, I played football most of high school, so I guess I just assumed I would somehow make that a career out of that and ending up pushing all the other things I liked to the back of my head."

I smiled. "So, you don't really like hunting vampires?"

He shrugged. "Someone's gotta do it."

"With great power comes great responsibility."

He smiled, but in a saddened way.

"It's so strange…" Paul sighed. "Thinking back to when we were kids, I use to dress up as Spider-man every Halloween, wishing I had superpowers. And now, here I am with them, and I'm wishing I didn't." He played with my hand in his, his face no longer hiding his sadness. "That's… funny."

There was no humor in his voice.

I reached up with my hands to turn his face to me before sealing his lips.

"What was that for?" He asked, happy once again.

"Do I need a reason to kiss you?" I questioned.

He gave me an amused look.

"Guess not." He said before leaning down to kiss me once more.

We kept doing our own thing for the rest of the time we spent together in our little bubble. My mother and Leah eventually came home, which then reminded me of my shift at work. I changed into something fresher before having supper with the family – Paul included. Soon enough, the three of them had to leave for the council meeting. I waited around a few more minutes, not wanting to be super early.

Driving down the main road in La Push always seemed so relaxing, especially in the evening time. As much as I loved being with Paul, it was also nice to just get some alone time.

I got to the store just in time for my shift. Janet welcomed me with a warm smile once before heading off to do other duties, leaving me in charge. For the most part, I just sat on a stool behind the counter and read a newspaper, while the scattered few people came in and did their own business before I rang their items up. It was when I was reading a strange article on a string of multiple deaths in Seattle that two figures came into the store.

I merely glanced up from the paper, but I quickly identified the two figures. It was Rachel Black, and that other girl named Kim. I hadn't seen them since the funeral.

"Oh, hey Seth." Rachel greeted me with a warm smile once she noticed me.

"Hi Rachel."

"Since when did you work here?" She asked, raising a friendly brow.

"Eh, only few weeks now. I've been helping out my mom since she took over for my dad at the council."

"Ah," She seemed to understand, but she didn't let the whole 'dead father' remark affect her. She'd always been good at that kind of stuff. "Well, how've you been anyway? How's Paul? Or-… do you still talk to him?" She asked with curiosity.

I froze for a moment and wondered if somehow, she knew. I mean, her father knew, and so did her brother, so wouldn't it only be logical for her to know just out of that? No… not unless she somehow found out herself. My whole family knew about it before me, and they still hadn't told me about anything.

"I've been doing good!" I said with the best enthusiasm possible. "Paul too." I then added.

"I'm sure you have." I heard, but it wasn't Rachel who said it. I looked over to the left of her to see Kim, off in the distance, minding her own business, with a kind of sour look on her face. Rachel somehow didn't even hear the comment, or otherwise wasn't phased by it.

What was Kim's problem? Did she hold some sort of grudge against Paul? And since I was his _friend_ , did she hold it against me as well? That seemed illogical and petty to hold one like that after all these months, especially when Rachel didn't seem to. _Unless she somehow knew about us._

Okay, now I was just being paranoid. There was no _way_ she could've known, especially if Rachel didn't.

The two girls went about to do some shopping before returning. I rung up their things and bagged their stuff, and wished them both a good night, to which Rachel thanked me and returned the good wishes, while I swear I heard Kim grunt.

After another hour, Janet returned to close shop with me, and then I was on the road. My mom's car was in the driveway when I pulled in, so I could only assume the three of them had returned. When I climbed up the few steps to the porch, I went to open the door, only for someone else to open it for me.

Paul stood tall in the doorway, looking down at me with some expression I couldn't comprehend.

"Hi." I said, wondering why he seemed to be acting weird.

"Hi…" He said, scratching the back of his neck.

My eyes narrowed at him. "…What's up, Paul…"

"N-Nothing, it's just uh…"

"Seth is that you?" My mother called out. I saw her peak her head out of the corner of the kitchen with a look of pure joy etched across her face.

That's when my eyes widened.

"You didn't…" I asked the boy with astonishment.

"…Sorry." He mumbled.

That's when my mother came and pulled us both into a big hug, jumping up and down and saying how happy she was, and while I didn't show it, I was happy too.

* * *

AN: Okay, first off, I AM SO SORRY. I really planned to do _AND_ finish this chapter back in June - July at the LATEST. But obviously that didn't happen. But I swear I have an excuse, and it's that I've just been SO busy the past few months, so it was really hard to find time to write this. BUT NOW things have calmed down, so I definitely plan to go back to the regular "Schedule" (if you want to call it that).

AAAHhh, it's been a WHOLE year since I published this fic, and I've loved writing every moment of it! So happy birthday!

Seth and Paul are FINALLY together! They're dating and holding hands and kissing and everything I've wanted to write about for the past year now! And it only gets better from here!

Again, I want to thank all of the people who have stuck around for so long, it really does mean the world to me!


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